100 Things: A Story of Friendship and Love
by mereditholiver
Summary: Borrowed elsewhere as a challenge! 100 things to describe the rangers and their relationships. Many things revealed, some may be shocking!
1. Chapter 1

I found this idea on another website that was issuing challenges for fanfic writers, so I decided to try this on this site. I have 100 words or phrases and must write a story that has a chapter as each point. I will jump around characters, but, promise, it will all work together. Please, let me know what you think. It sounded like a cool idea in my head, but when it's written it might not be that way.

INTRODUCTION

The group of teens was gathered around their favorite table in the juice bar. They were watching four of their friends sparring on the mats in front of their table.

The boy in white was Tommy Oliver. His long hair and deep hazel eyes made him a hot topic among the girls at Angel Grove High. Tommy was an accomplished martial artist and totally clueless to his boyish good looks. At just under six feet, he was a formidable presence everywhere he went. Despite the number of girls wanting his attention, he had eyes for one girl.

She was seated at the table watching the sparring match. Wearing a pretty floral pink dress, Kimberly Hart knew she was envied by nearly every girl in the school because of her relationship with Tommy. She cheered her boyfriend on and took a sip of her soda. She laughed at her best friend, a pretty girl seated next to her, wearing purple.

That was Meredith Oliver. She was Tommy's twin sister, younger by five minutes. She had the same long dark hair as her brother and the same eyes. Despite the height difference, Meredith was nine inches shorter than Tommy, they did resemble each other quite closely. You could tell they were siblings. Meredith was a cheerleader, like Kimberly, but she also did martial arts. Tommy and Meredith had started together, but Tommy was much better, but Meredith could keep up. She was cheering on her boyfriend, a cute guy wearing red karate pants and white tank top.

Rocky DeSantos was sparring with Tommy, his girlfriend's twin brother. Tommy and Rocky were about the same skill level, so neither one could get a clear upper hand. Rocky was Tommy's height with short brown hair and dark brown eyes. He came from a large family and had additional responsiblities with his siblings, but Meredith loved coming to his house to help him babysit. They had been together for two years, almost as long as Tommy and Kimberly. He got along great with Tommy and the rest of their group which included his best friend from kindergarten.

The boy in black was sparring on the mats near Rocky. Adam Park was a martial artist, like most of the guys in their group. He was shy and quiet and was usually the voice of reason in their group. He had occasional bouts of self-doubt, but his friends always picked him up. Especially his girlfriend. He smiled as he looked at the thin Asian girl in yellow, sitting with Kimberly and Meredith.

Trini Kwan noticed her boyfriend looking at her. She waved at him and turned back to her best friends. She had been friends with Kimberly since preschool and they were like sisters. When Meredith moved to town, Trini and Kimberly immediately liked the pretite girl in with a penchant for purple. They had become great friends. Trini counted her blessings that everyone was such good friends. She directed a question to another girl in yellow, her neighbor, Aisha and Trini had lived next door for the past six months and Trini had welcomed Aisha into their group. She'd become great friends with Kimberly and Meredith. Meredith and Kimberly had even set her up with another guy in their group. Aisha could tell her girlfriends anything. They were all very close. She was especially glad that, like Meredith, Kimberly and Trini, she as dating a guy in their close circle. She looked to the other side of the juice bar and saw another boy in black giving an intro dancing lesson.

Zack Taylor knew she was looking at him. He often did the same thing when she was teaching her dance classes. His girlfriend, Aisha, was wonderful. He'd spent a lot of time in high school being a player, but when Meredith had introduced him to the new girl in their group, he'd dropped every habit he'd had regarding women and flirting and paid attention to her. Aisha had been flattered and they had been dating three months. He did a spin kick and saw his best friend doing the same as he sparred with Adam.

Jason Scott, wearing his black and red karate gi, was sparring with Adam. Jason was another of Angel Grove's 'hot' guys. He knew a lot of girls paid attention to him during his sparring matches, but he only had eyes for one girl. She was standing at the ballet barre doing stretches before her ballet practice. She brought herself up on her toes, her pink ballet outfit spinning as she did. He hadn't known anyone to capture his attention since he had dated Meredith. He wanted to ask her out, but he wasn't sure how to go about it. He noticed her looking at him and she sent him one of his 'melting' smiles, or so Meredith called them.

She continued her stretching, aware that Jason was watching her. That was nearly enough to throw her off her routine. Katherine Hilliard was an accomplished ballet dancer and she loved how dancing made her feel. She just hoped she didn't intimidate anyone with her dedication. She had seen the same dedication in Jason and his martial arts. She was hoping he would ask her out and soon. She looked at the table and her group of friends. She knew they were talking about the one person in their group that was missing.

Billy Cranston had gone to Aquitar to assist them with their problems and to seek a cure for his rapid aging. The entire crew hoped he'd be cured and return soon. They all missed the quiet boy in blue.

The group was all talking amongst themselves about the upcoming dance, 'Love Is In The Air.'

The couples were, no doubt, thinking of how they first met and got together.

***That's part one, an introduction to the group and the couples. The next part is Love. Let me know what you think.*** -mereditholiver


	2. Love

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the way this is written and the character of Meredith. The idea was borrowed from another fan fiction site and the other stuff belongs to someone with a bigger imagination and deeper pockets than me.

LOVE

Tommy and Kimberly had been together the longest in the group. Meredith had been dating Jason for three months before Tommy and Kimberly got together, but they had broken up just after their first anniversary. Tommy had been nervous about asking Kimberly to the dance. He'd finally gotten up the nerve and kissed her BEFORE he asked her to the dance. They had been dating ever since and were so sweet to each other, the others were often accusing them of being too sweet. Tommy loved Kimberly and she loved him and neither had a problem telling each other. Meredith wished she knew a little bit less about their love life, but being Tommy's sister and Kim's best friend, she usually heard EVERYTHING.

Meredith and Rocky had been dating for almost as long as Tommy and Kim. They were four months shy of two years. Meredith and Rocky began dating after her relationship with Jason ended. While Meredith and Jason never talked about why they broke up, they hadn't spoken to each other for a few weeks afterward, but were now good friends. Jason often turned to Meredith for advice for various things and Rocky didn't mind. Jason had been single for most of his relationship with Meredith and he had never once felt Jason was going after Meredith again. Rocky was deeply in love with Meredith and felt she was the girl he was going to marry. Meredith felt the same way, but the couple hadn't discussed the future. They kept their relationship private. Well, as private as possible with Tommy for a brother and Kimberly for a friend. The couple was thankful they were together and never forgot to let the other knew how they felt. The others accused them of being almost as lovey-dovey as Tommy and Kimberly. Meredith would always be grateful to Rocky for helping her out of her funk after her break up with Jason. Tommy and Rocky were the only two that knew what had happened to cause Meredith and Jason to break up. They hadn't told anyone else. Kimberly wasn't even aware of the reasons behind it, but she understood why Meredith would take Tommy into her confidence, he was her brother.

Trini and Adam had been dating six months. They had liked each other for longer than that, but both of them, shy by nature, took forever to ask the other out. Finally Kimberly had told Tommy to tell Adam to just ask her out. She had done the same to Trini. It drove the gang crazy that the two, who obviously cared about each other, couldn't get over their shyness to actually date. Tommy and Kimberly went with them on a double date and, finally, the two realized how much they liked each other. They had been dating ever since, but were extremely guarded when talking about their relationship in public. They barely held hands when the others were around. Meredith and Rocky thought it was sweet, Tommy and Kimberly just thought it was odd. Meredith reminded her friend that just because she couldn't keep her hands off Tommy whenever they are in the same room, didn't mean everyone had to touch their significant other whenever they were together.

Aisha had heard about Zack before she actually met him. Meredith had introduced them and she was immediately smitten by the boy, but remembered his reputation. Aisha played hard to get for a long time before she caved and went to the movies with Meredith and Rocky. They had a great time and they were soon another couple in the circle of friends. No one would have thought they would still be together, but Zack wasn't the outrageous flirt he used to be. He only flirted with those in the group. He only had eyes for Aisha.

Jason's desire for Katherine was obvious to everyone. Katherine's admiration of Jason didn't go unnoticed. Everyone in the group had a plan t to get the two of them together. They were encouraging Jason to ask the ballerina to the dance. Jason was balking at the idea. Not because he didn't want to go, but he didn't think she was interested. Meredith had called her ex-boyfriend an idiot regarding the situation on more than one occasion.

The coupled were hoping they could get Jason and Katherine together in time for the dance. The girls were already forming a plan.

***That's Chapter 2. Next installment will focus on one couple or one part of a couple, I haven't decided yet, in 'Light.'*** -mereditholiver


	3. Light

DISCLAIMER: I borrowed the ideas for the chapter titles, but the writing is all original. The character of Meredith is all mine. This is AU. Some might find the characters OOC and I do apologize, but I'm taking creative license. All other ideas belong to someone with the rights to the Power Rangers.

LIGHT

Tommy Oliver was a lucky man. He had a family which consisted of his nurse mom and doctor dad and his twin sister, who was easily his best friend. He had a great girlfriend, Kimberly and a wonderful circle of close friends. He remembered a time when it wasn't that way.

He had been upset about leaving Texas. His friends, school and karate group were there. He didn't want to leave the place he'd thought they stay in for a few years.

When he'd arrived in Angel Grove he was disappointed to find that his sister had already made a great group of friends and would probably have a boyfriend in the near future. Tommy was jealous. He had been used to sharing friends with his sister, but his sister was still his best friend. He didn't like that she'd found others without him. Granted she'd invited him along, but he'd felt like a third-wheel. He had become a loner.

That is probably why it was so easy for Rita to turn him into her evil green ranger. That was not a time he thought about much. Tommy, while aware that he was under a spell, still remembered everything he said and did while he was evil. He'd been mean to his sister and to her friends who were desperately trying to be his friends. He'd said cruel things to all of them and treated his sister like dirt. He hated the way he acted and hated that he remembered. He supposed he remembered so he wouldn't do it again, but it still bugged him.

When Jason had defeated him and broken the sword of darkness, Tommy had seen the light. The light that was the frienship with this group of people. He was accepted, despite what he had done. His sister still loved him, despite what had happened. Kimberly still wanted to be with him, despite him trying his best to ruin the power rangers. Tommy knew this was the light. His friendship with these people, his relationship with Kimberly and his relationship with his sister.

Tommy didn't want to dwell on what had happened. He was waiting for what would happen. Hopefully, Kimberly would be his date for the dance. It was kind of assumed, but Tommy wanted to make sure.

He approached Kimberly and asked her if she wanted to go to the dance. She turned around and grinned, leaving Tommy questioning what she was really going to say. "Kimberly." he said.

She turned around, punched him in the shoulder, "Couldn't make it too easy on you," she said, smiling. Just like the first time he'd asked her out, he picked her up and spun her around. He planted her feet back on the ground and kissed her. She smiled, lighting up Tommy's whole world.

He saw his sister laughing with her boyfriend and remembered when she had experienced a very painful period in her past. He was glad she wasn't going there again.

Meredith laughed at Rocky. She couldn't believe how lucky she was when she and Rocky started dating. She credited him and Tommy with bringing her out of her funk when she and Jason had broken up. Rocky's friendship and quiet solace with her provided her with what she needed.

***Now onto the 'Dark.' A secret will be revealed.*** -mereditholiver


	4. Dark

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing except how this is written. I got the idea from another site. All characters, with the exception of Meredith, belong to someone else.

Meredith had never experienced a dark period in her life until the day she and Jason broke up. She thought that having Tommy become evil was a tough thing to get over, she was sadly mistaken.

Not wanting to sound melodramatic, but she was heartsick. Never in her life would she have thought he would do that to her.

Meredith had met Jason Scott her first day of classes at the high school. They had immediately felt an attraction. After they became power rangers, Jason and Meredith had developed a comfortable relationship. They had a relationship that was sweet and innocent. They attended dances, went on dates and hung out at the each other's houses. Meredith was in love with Jason and he was in love with her. The day that changed, Meredith found her solid foundation and belief in true love crumble.

Jason picked Meredith up for their usual Saturday afternoon date. They did a variety of things during those dates. They sometimes did stuff alone and sometimes with the group or they double dated with Tommy and Kimberly.

Jason and Meredith went to the park to have their date. Meredith had fully expected a day of riding in the paddleboats and hanging out in the park. She was totally not prepared for what Jason was about to tell her.

"Meri, I have something to tell you," he said.

Meredith wasn't exactly sure what happened. She heard Jason's words, but she had yet to process exactly what they meant.

"I gave up my powers to Rocky this morning. I have something I need to tell you," he said.

"Why did you give up your powers. You love being a ranger," she said.

"I do, but I haven't been very loyal to the ranger code. I'm not proud of this but, when you were dealing with the whole Tommy situation and trying to come to terms with what happened, I cheated on you.," he said.

The air was sucked out of her. Meredith couldn't understand. She knew she'd been distracted by Tommy's brush with evil, but she'd never expected Jason to cheat on her. She didn't think she'd neglected him, but she couldn't believe that he'd be that way.

Meredith, who had sat down on the picnic table turned to him and asked, "Who was it? What exactly did you do?"

Jason took a deep breath and sat down next to Meredith. The look of shock on her face broke his heart. He couldn't stand that he'd hurt her and he was really shocked by his own behavior and he immediately regretted what happened.

Meredith wanted to lash out. She wanted to say something mean and cruel to Jason, but she didn't have the energy. The discovery that he had cheated on her while she was dealing with the dark chapter of her life, only added to the darkness.

Meredith, despite her resolve not to cry, began crying. She couldn't understand why this had happened. She turned back to Jason and asked, "Why?"

"We've been together for a year and whenever I've approached the topic of sex, you change the subject. You won't even talk to me about it. I wanted to take that next step in our relationship, but you always brushed me off or changed the subject. Then this thing with Tommy happened and you didn't pay any attention to me. I was spending more time alone and started thinking I should maybe break up with you and we'd get back together when things calmed down with Tommy. I ran into Emily at a party. You didn't want to go to the party because you were worried about Tommy," he said.

"I remember that party. You said you left the rest of the group to take someone home. That isn't what happened," she said.

"Emily said she needed a ride home. She had a horrible fight with her boyfriend right in the middle of the party. I offered to take her and get her away from everything. We were driving home and she asked if we could stop at the lake. I agreed. She started asking about you and why you weren't with me and that got me missing you. She then started flattering me and I fell for it. I'm not proud of what I did, but at the time I was getting what I needed. I'm a normal, hormonal teenage male. I probably couldn't stop myself, but I didn't. I slept with Emily that night and we've been getting together when you've been busy. I gave up my power coin because I knew that my lying and infidelity were undermining to the team," he said.

Meredith was crying. She looked at Jason and all the feelings she felt for him were gone and in it's place was nothing but hate and despair. She couldn't understand what she'd done, but knew she wasn't really responsible for Jason's actions, he was. Meredith felt guilty for neglecting him, but that was quickly replaced with anger. She didn't want to around him at all.

She got up from the picnic table and started to walk away. She walked away and never looked back at him. He sat down on the bench and put his face in his hands. He didn't know what was going to happen now, but he knew he'd ruined his relationship with Meredith. He walked to his truck. He wasn't going to go after Meredith. He knew she was running right to Tommy, her brother was her protector.

Jason started his truck and headed for home. He started thinking about the offer he'd been given to attend the teen peace conference in Switzerland. He thought this was the change and the new start that he needed.

Several days passed before Jason and Meredith saw each other again. Meredith hadn't said a word to anyone about the breakup. Everyone, with the exception of Tommy, thought they were still together. Everyone was surprised when Jason announced he was leaving for Switzerland. The entire group shot looks at Meredith waiting for her to respond. When Jason asked her a question, Meredith's normal smile disappeared. Her normal happy demeanor was replaced by something no one in the group recognized.

"I have cried enough over you. Now it's time for you to jump off a bridge so I can move on with my life," she said. She gathered her stuff up and headed out the door. Tommy and Rocky following behind her. Jason told everyone that they had fought over this decision and they had broken up. This shocked the group, but made them understand the venom in Meredith's voice. Meredith didn't want to talk about the exact reasons why and Jason wasn't about to admit he'd been a dog.

He said goodbye to the rest of his friends and headed off to get ready for his trip. He hoped his year in Europe would give Meredith a chance to think about forgiving him. If nothing, he wanted his friendship back with Meredith. He didn't know if she'd feel the same way.

***So that's the 'Dark' period. Meredith and Jason break up and it's bitter! Sorry Jason was so mean, but no one's perfect. ;) The next installment is 'Seeking Solace.' Meredith finds someone to bring her out of her funk and this pleases Tommy.*** -mereditholiver


	5. Seeking Solace

DISCLAIMER: Got this from another site as a challenge. The titles may be borrowed from there, but the writing and the character of Meredith are all original. Anything that resembles something you've seen before belongs to someone else and is, therefore, not mine.

SEEKING SOLACE

Meredith shut herself in her room. She didn't come out except for school and even then the only one daring enough to talk to her was Rocky. Tommy gave his sister a wide berth during this time, clueless as to how to help her.

Rocky hated to see Meredith this way. He had developed a close friendship with the purple ranger through their classes and the friendship he'd developed with her brother.

He made a decision one day to head to Meredith's house to find out what had happened. Jason had left for Switzerland and Meredith hadn't even said goodbye. It was puzzling for him to figure out. Rocky knocked on the front door of the Oliver house. His knock was answered by Tommy.

"Rocko. What are you doing here," he asked.

"I wanted to talk to Meredith. I want to see what's going on with her. She hasn't talked to me in a few days and I miss it," Rocky said.

"Well, she's in her room. You're welcome to try to talk to her, but don't say I didn't warn you," he said.

Rocky thanked Tommy and headed up the stairs. He knew Meredith's room was next door to Tommy's and he knocked on her door.

"Go away," she said.

"Not gonna happen, Meri. Will you let me in," he asked.

The door opened and revealed Meredith wearing khaki cargo pants and a long sleeve purple top.

"What do you want Rocky," she asked him.

"I wanted to talk with you," he said.

Meredith stood back and let him come into the room. Rocky had never seen the inside of her room. She had a lavender rug on the floor that matched the lavender walls. She had an oak sleigh bed with a purple plaid comforter and lots of pillows in different shades of purple. Her walls were filled with books and various awards along with pictures and mementos of various times in their lives.

Meredith sat down on the bed and Rocky sat in the white chair with the purple blanket thrown over it.

"Meri, I'm worried about you. Will you tell me what happened," he asked.

Meredith looked at Rocky. She trusted him. She didn't know why, but she trusted him as much as she trusted Tommy. Tommy knew what had caused her to flee into herself, but she didn't know if Rocky would tell everyone what happened.

"Jason and I broke up," she said.

"I gathered that. There's something else. Meri, you can trust me. I'm not going to tell anyone," he said.

Meredith took a deep breath. "Jason admitted that he cheated on me with Emily. And it wasn't just a little kiss here or there. He actually slept with her the night of that party at Sue Davis' house," she said.

"He did WHAT! He cheated on you with that slut," Rocky practically screamed.

"A little louder Rocky, I don't think they heard of my embarrassment on the MOON," she yelled back at him.

"Sorry, Meri, but I can't believe he would do that to you," he said."Well, he did. And now I'm trying to figure out why my ex-boyfriend thought it was necessary to cheat on me with the easiest girl in school," she said.

Rocky was pissed. Actually he was beyond pissed. He really wished Jason was still here so he could pound him during a sparring match. 'No, that wouldn't do any good,' he thought. 'Meri would hate me forever.'

"Look, Meri, I don't know why he would do something so cruel and thoughtless. I can't think of any reason why a guy would cheat on their girlfriend. It's just wrong. I would never do that. Meredith, Jason's an idiot. He didn't understand what a wonderful thing he had," Rocky said.

Meredith, who avoided looking at him, suddenly began staring at him, as if seeing him for the first time.

"Do you mean that," she asked him.

Rocky got out of the chair and kneeled in front of her. He took her right hand in his left and put his right hand on top of hers. "Yes, I do," he said.

Meredith, who had spent the last three weeks thinking she was unlovable, smiled at him.

Rocky smiled back and leaned toward her.

Meredith closed her eyes in anticipation. Rocky placed a simple sweet kiss on her lips. The kiss, while not intense, was so sweet, it took her breath away.

Rocky smiled at her when she opened her eyes. She smiled back and found herself wrapped in his arms. She clung to him and found the acceptance to move on and be happy. She found her solace she didn't know she was seeking. Rocky was her island in the middle of this chaos.

The couple got up and walked down to the living room to see Tommy. Tommy, who'd been wishing his sister would become the happy girl she was again, smiled.

"Don't make me give you a speech, DeSantos," Tommy laughed. Meredith smiled at her brother and lead Rocky out the front door. She didn't know where they were going, but she knew she'd missed a lot during her time in her room. Now, she was determined to enjoy it, with Rocky.

***Meredith found happiness with Rocky. Next 'Break Away' will deal with a member leaving the team and the repercussions of that. Enjoy.*** -mereditholiver


	6. Break Away

DISCLAIMER: I borrowed this from another fanfic site as a challenge. I own nothing but the way this is written and the character of Meredith. All other characters and locations are the product of someone else's imagination and, ergo, belong to them. Happy reading.

BREAK AWAY

Tommy and Kimberly watched Meredith walk out the door with Rocky. It seemed that, while Jason had scarred her, Meredith was willing to give Rocky a chance. Tommy seemed happy that Meredith was going to be back to normal.

He turned his attention back to Kimberly. Something had been bothering her and he didn't know what.

"Ok, Kim, tell me what's bothering you," he said.

"I got an offer to train for the Pan Globals. I was approached by Coach Schmidt during my practice. He thinks I have what it takes to win the gold," she said.

Tommy's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. This was the opportunity of a lifetime for Kim. He knew how much it meant to her to compete for something this big.

"That's awesome, beautiful. Are you going to do it," he asked her.

"I've been thinking about it. I might be able to train here for a while. I just don't know if being a ranger is going to work with all the practicing I'm going to have to do. I'm confused right now," she said.

Tommy wrapped his arms around his petite girlfriend. "What do you want to do," he asked her."I want to try to see if I can win, but I don't want to abandon the rangers," she said.

"Well, maybe you can 'loan' your powers to someone. When you're done with the competition, if you want to get them back, you could," he said.

"That sounds like a good idea. I'll have to think about it," she said.

Tommy and Kimberly cuddled on the couch. Neither said a word.

Meredith returned home with Rocky an hour later. Tommy and Kimberly were still on the couch.

"Hey guys. Everything OK," Meredith asked.

"Yeah, just discussing something important," Tommy said. Meredith recognized the tone in Tommy's voice and she took Rocky downstairs to the family room to watch a movie. She figured Tommy would be talking to her about it later, so she'd leave the two of them alone.

"Are you going to tell Meri," Tommy asked.

"You can tell her. I want to talk to Zordon and see if I can give my powers away temporarily if necessary. Maybe I can practice and be a ranger," she said.

"We could only call you if we really needed you. That might help a little bit," Tommy said.

"It might," she said, smiling at him.

The two teleported to the command center, leaving in streaks of white and pink.

"Guess they had something important to discuss," Meredith said.

Rocky nodded in agreement and they went back to watching their movie.

Tommy and Kimberly landed in the command center.

"TOMMY, KIMBERLY THIS IS A SURPRISE. WHAT SEEMS TO BE THE TROUBLE."

"Kimberly has something to discuss with you," Tommy said.

"WHAT IS IT, MY YOUNG CRANE?"

"I was asked to train for the Pan Global team today. It will take a lot of work and, while I don't want to give up my responsibility to the rangers, I may need to do that to dedicate more time to training. If I do, could someone hold my powers on a temporary basis until I was ready to take them back or would they be gone from me forever," she asked.

"THE POWER WOULD ALWAYS BE A PART OF YOU, BUT THE PHYSICAL MANIFESTATION WOULD NOT. IF YOU WANTED TO BECOME A RANGER AGAIN, YOUR SUCCESSOR WOULD HAVE TO AGREE TO HAND THE POWER OVER TO YOU AND NAME YOU THE SUCCESSOR OF IT. IF A NEW POWER IS FOUND AND YOU WERE DEEMED ABLE TO TAKE THAT POWER, YOU COULD BECOME A RANGER AGAIN."

"So I would lose the power if I turned it over," she said.

"YES, BUT YOU WOULD ALWAYS BE A RANGER. YOU WOULD ALWAYS POSSESS YOUR NINJETTI SPIRIT ANIMAL. NO MATTER WHAT, THE CRANE IS YOUR ANIMAL."

"Thanks, Zordon. I have a lot to think about," Kimberly said.

"I KNOW YOU WILL DO THE RIGHT THING, KIMBERLY."

Tommy and Kimberly teleported back to woods behind his house.

"What are you going to do," he asked her as they walked around the yard hand-in-hand.

"I guess I'll stay a ranger until I can't do it anymore. I don't want to give up this dream. I've wanted to do this since I was a little girl. Do you understand," she asked her boyfriend. She knew that he did, but she always felt better by voicing what's on her mind with him.

"Of course I do. This is the opportunity to do the things you've always wanted to do. You should do it and not worry about us. If you have to turn over your power, I'll still be your white tiger. You'll always have me and Meredith and everyone else. We won't stand in the way of your dream," he said.

Kimberly looked into his eyes. She loved his eyes. Actually she loved everything about his physical appearance. But she loved looking into his eyes because they could never lie to her. She knew he would always love her, whether she was a ranger or not, whether she was a gold medalist or not. As long as she was Kimberly Ann Hart, she'd always be beautiful to him.

"I love you, Tommy," she said.

"I love you, too, Kim," he said, before claiming her for a kiss. A kiss that was extremely passionate.

She whispered in his ear, "You're parents are out of town, right."

He practically growled the "Yes,"

She pulled him toward the house and they went in through the sliding glass doors.

A quick peek through the railing to the family room, showed Meredith and Rocky were holding their own make out session, so they zipped upstairs.

They entered Tommy's room and locked the door. He quickly locked the door to the connecting bathroom so they wouldn't be interrupted and climbed on the bed where Kimberly was already leaning back against the wall.

She pulled him toward her and claimed his mouth in a sizzling kiss. Soon the two were tossing clothing onto the floor. The fought the covers on the bed and slipped under them. They were soon caught up in the passion that was their love making.

Kimberly rested her head on Tommy's chest, ever amazed at how wonderful it was to be with him. Even after six months, she was still surprised at how wonderful sex with Tommy was. She wondered if there was anything he didn't do well. She closed her eyes and let sleep take her. She didn't have to be home since her mother was on a weekend getaway with her new boyfriend. She was going to spend the night with Tommy.

Tommy felt Kimberly shift herself and soon felt her breathing settle into a deep rhythm that he knew well. She was asleep. He couldn't believe how lucky he was to have a girl like Kimberly in his life. She was everything he had ever wanted and everything he didn't know he needed. He cuddled her closer to him and closed his eyes. Meredith had probably figured out what was going on in his room, but he really didn't care. His sister was probably guilty of the same thing, but he wasn't going to think about that. He went to sleep, unable to believe Kimberly was in his arms. And he wasn't letting go.

Meredith and Rocky finished their movie and were talking. They had been downstairs for hours before Meredith realized she'd never heard Tommy and Kimberly leave the house. She asked Rocky if he'd seen or heard them and he admitted he'd been more interested in her than what her brother and Kimberly were doing.

She ran upstairs to get something for them to drink when she noticed Kimberly's bag was still on the bench by the front door. Meredith peeked up the steps and saw Tommy's door was shut. Meredith was willing to be that his door was locked as was his bathroom door. 'Don't go there, Meredith. Just don't,' she said to herself.

She grabbed two bottles of water and went back to Rocky.

"Did Tommy take Kimberly home," he asked, opening his water bottle.

"No, they're both upstairs," she said, looking at the satellite guide on the TV.

"Are they watching another movie," he asked, putting his arm back around Meredith.

Meredith selected another movie for them to watch and leaned back against him.

"Nope, they're probably in bed together," she said matter-of-factly.

Rocky looked at her, shock written all over his face.

"Oh come on, you have to know that everyone on the team has been trying to figure out exactly how far Tommy and Kimberly have actually gone. I've always managed to avoid the topic because it's just too weird for me," Meredith said.

"So Tommy and Kimberly are having sex. Wow," he said.

"Yup and we can't talk about this anymore because it's really creeping me out," she said.

Rocky got off the couch and Meredith walked him to the kissed her good night and said he'd see her tomorrow.

"OK and don't let anyone to know that you know about those two. Especially those two. I'd hate for either one to be mad at me. Since they don't have any dirt on me, it's great leverage," she said.

Rocky laughed as he kissed her again and headed for home. The dance was tomorrow night and he couldn't wait to see Meredith on the dance floor. He smiled as he turned down his street.

***Next installment is 'The Dance.' This will be a purely fluff chapter, but will lead into the installment after that one. Happy reading.*** -mereditholiver


	7. Dancing in the Dark

DISCLAIMER: This was borrowed, but I'm changing some of the titles because they kind of repeat. All writing is original and Meredith belongs to me. Everything else belongs to someone else and is not mine.

DANCING IN THE DARK

Focus quickly shifted for Kimberly from her dilemma with gymnastics to the upcoming dance. She was all about shopping. She met up with her girlfriends and they headed to the mall the Saturday before the dance. The four girls climbed into Meredith's white jeep and headed toward the mall.

"I don't have a clue about what I'm going to wear," Trini said.

"Something yellow," Kimberly replied.

The girls laughed. They were all excited for the dance.

"Should we have asked Katherine to go with us," Meredith asked, pulling into the mall parking lot.

"I asked, but she has a ballet audition for that school she wants to go to after graduation. She said it was either audition this week or next week and miss the dance," Kimberly said.

"Did my bone-head ex ask her," Meredith asked, locking the Jeep as they walked toward the entrance.

"Yesterday. She told me in math," Aisha said.

"That's good. Jason needs a steady girlfriend," Trini said.

"My thoughts exactly," Meredith said, looking through a rack of dresses.

"So, are you ever going to tell us why you and Jase broke up and why you hated him for a while," Aisha asked.

"No. I don't like to talk about it. It's not important anymore. What matters now is that I have Rocky and I love him," Meredith said.

Kimberly knew Meredith didn't like to talk about her relationship with Jason, so she decided to change the subject and take the heat off her best friend.

"Girls, we're here to get dresses for the dance. One that we are going to with our boyfriends. Let's start looking," she said.

The girls went in four different directions.

Kimberly was looking at short pink dresses, while Meredith was looking at long purple ones. Trini and Aisha were looking at yellow dresses. Trini was going long, Aisha short.

Kimberly pulled several gowns off the rack and held them up to the mirror. They looked good on the hanger, but didn't seem like they'd work on her. She had selected several gowns, before she found the one she wanted. She slipped it on in the dressing room and let out a shriek, summoning her three friends to the dressing room believing she was in danger.

"Kim, are you OK," Trini asked.

"I found it. I found the PERFECT DRESS," she screamed.

"Calm down and let us see it," Meredith said.

"Yeah. I threw down two perfectly good dresses for your scream, so this had better be THE dress," Aisha said.

Kimberly stepped out of the dressing room in a pink strapless dress with a rhine stoned bodice. The skirt was short in the front and angled down to a full length in the back. The back was tied like a corset. The bodice itself was gathered until just past the hips, before allowing a flair for the skirt. Kimberly did a couple of spins, totally in love with the dress.

"Wow! I have to agree. That is a great dress," Aisha said.

"Tommy's not going to know what hit him," Meredith said.

Kimberly smiled in the mirror. "I know, right. Now, it's time for you guys to find your dresses," she said. She slipped back into the dressing room to put the dress back on the hanger. When she emerged, each had selected a few dresses and were waiting for her to help them narrow down their choices.

"I think this is the perfect one for you, Sha," Meredith said, pointing to a short dress. Aisha took it to the dressing room and stepped out with a smile on her face. The strapless dress had a short skirt with lots of organza on it and beading at the waist.

"This is perfect," Aisha said, spinning in front of the mirror."I agree. Zack's going to love it," Trini said.

"Now it's your turn," Aisha said before she headed back into the dressing room.

She came out to find Meredith and Kimberly pushing Trini into the dressing room with a gown.

"What did you two do," Aisha asked.

"We found the PERFECT dress for her. Adam is going to die when he sees her," Kimberly said.

Trini came out in a simple yellow dress that clung to her without being obvious. The beaded spaghetti straps crossed in the back.

"Simple and stunning," Meredith said.

"That is perfect. You're hair is going to look so awesome against that dress," Kimberly said.

"Wow! Adam's going to be totally awestruck," Aisha said.

Trini smiled a mile wide and went back into the dressing room to change.

Trini came out and Meredith soon found three pairs of eyes on her.

"What," she said.

"You're turn. Come on," Kimberly said, dragging the hand of her best friend to the dresses.

"Rocky doesn't care what I wear, just as long as we're together," she said.

"That's beside the point. Rocky thinks you look good wearing his sweats," Trini said.

"No, he thinks she looks sexy wearing his clothes," Kimberly clarified.

"So he doesn't care what I wear," she said.

"Just because he doesn't care, doesn't mean that he doesn't want to see you in something sexy," Aisha said.

Realizing she was severely outnumbered, she relented and was dragged back to the dresses she'd pulled out minutes earlier.

The three girls all grabbed the same dress. "This one," they said together.

Meredith took the gown and went into the dressing room.

Meredith came out and her friends were speechless.

The dress was a full strapless ball gown with a beaded bodice. It had a cinched waist with a flair skirt. Meredith did a spin. She felt like a princess and, she had to admit, this was the perfect dress for her to wear.

"That's it," Kimberly said.

The others nodded their heads in agreement. Meredith went back to the dressing room and changed.

She exited the fitting room and met with the others at the check out. They paid for their purchases and Meredith drove the three girls home.

She carried her dress inside when she arrived home and hung it just inside her closet.

A WEEK LATER

After spending the week fighting the monsters Rita and Zedd were sending down, the group was ready for a little down time and fun.

The girls were gathered at Meredith's house. The guys had gathered at Jason's.

The girls had turned Meredith's room, Tommy's room and the bathroom into a beauty parlor. The five girls were running around pinning each other's hair and helping with zippers and last minute touch ups. They were hoping Rita and Zedd would leave them alone that night.

Katherine was the first one ready. She had a short pink dress made of velvet. She had a pearl broach pinned in the middle. Kimberly commented on her great fashion sense. She had paired the pink dress with matching ballet flats. Her hair was up in a messy bun complete with pink flowers woven through it.

Meredith was finished next. She had pulled her hair in to a twist with cascading curls.

Aisha pulled her braids into a pony tail.

Kimberly pulled half of her hair up using big curls to complete the look.

Trini had pinned her hair back from her face, but kept it down in the back. Her dark hair shined against the yellow dress.

The five girls smiled at each other. Kimberly pulled her camera out of her large duffle bag and, setting it on the dresser, pushed her friends together for a photograph.

The four loved the picture and Kimberly promised to get them all copies of the photos.

The were giggling when the door bell rang. Meredith's mom opened the door allowing the boys to enter.

"Thomas you look very handsome," she said to Tommy, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

He smiled at his mom.

"Girls, your dates have arrived," she called up the stairs.

Tommy's dad had the camera ready to take pictures of the happy couples.

One by one the girls came down stairs to their speechless dates. Following tons of pictures, the couples piled into the two limos that had been ordered for the night.

Tommy, Kimberly, Meredith and Rocky were in one while Jason, Kat, Zack, Aisha, Trini and Adam were in the other.

They arrived at the dance in style.

The entered the room and found themselves seats at a table.

They had only been at the dance for 30 minutes when the lights went out. Everyone thought it was just a power failure, but the beeping of their communicators, told another story.

Tommy, Kimberly, Aisha, Adam, Rocky and Billy headed for the secluded hallway, leaving the others at the table to make excuses for their absences.

"RANGERS, THE POWER FAILURE WAS CAUSED BY ONE OF RITA AND ZEDD'S MONSTERS, POWER DRAIN. HE DERIVES HIS ENERGY FROM THE POWER LINES AROUND THE CITY. YOU MUST STOP HIM BEFORE HE PLUNGES THE WHO CITY INTO DARKNESS."

"Ready guys? It's morphin' time," Tommy said.

Each morphed and teleported to the park. They engaged the monster and managed to keep it from taking all the cities power.

The powered down and headed back to the dance.

"Man, it's awfully dark. I guess we're going to have to cancel the dance," Adam said.

"Not necessarily. Hey Ernie, do you have candles," Meredith asked.

"Boxes of them," he said

"Meri what are you thinking," Tommy asked his sister.

"We move the dance outside to the Beach Club and we set candles around the perimeter of the dance floor and let them provide light. We can call it 'Dance in the Dark,'" she said.

The gang thought about it before Zack spoke up, "Meri, that's a great idea. Let's get started. The sooner the candles are set up, the sooner we can get back to the dance."

They set the candles all over the place. Soon with the help of the Tiki torches and the stars and moon, the guests had a romantic outdoor dance for the rest of the evening.

Using a small generator Ernie had, the DJ had enough power to play his music. The electricity was supposed to be restored within the hour.

"This looks really nice. This is a great idea," Jason said after helping arrange the candles and set up the torches.

Mr. Kaplan approached the group, just as the DJ was setting back up.

"I was just informed that the electricity has been restored. Do you want keep the candles or turn the lights back on," he asked the group.

"This looks really nice. I say we keep it," Kimberly said.

Everyone else agreed and that began a tradition at AGH, 'Dancing in the Dark.' They planned the dance for outside every year after that.

"It isn't everyday that Rita's monsters are a blessing in disguise. This turned out to be a really nice dance, despite Power Drain," Tommy said.

Everyone agreed and continued dancing with their dates into the night.

***I wasn't too happy with this chapter, but I thought an outside dance would be really cool. The next installment is 'Innocence' and the finds our couples talking about sex. What will they say?*** -mereditholiver


	8. Innocence

DISCLAIMER: I borrowed this idea. Hope it's turning out well. I own the writing of this, but if it sounds familiar it probably doesn't belong to me. Meredith is mine and exists only in my head and the occasional AU.

The weeks following the dance were busy for the rangers. They fought Tengas and battled monsters courtesy of Rita and Zedd.

They were enjoying a carefree day together when they were summoned to the command center.

They all teleported, leaving Jason, Trini, Zack and Katherine in the park.

They arrived at the command center to find Alpha in tizzy over a new evil, or more precisely, an old evil renewed.

"What's the problem, Alpha," Tommy asked.

"Aye, yi, yi Rangers. Ivan Ooze is back," Alpha informed the stunned group.

"WHAT," Kimberly screeched.

"ALPHA AND I HAVE DETECTED AN ENERGY SIGNATURE THAT MATCHES IVAN. HE'S RETURNED RANGERS."

The gravity of the situation hit the rangers like a slap in the face. Several curses were uttered by the guys and the girls were shocked.

"How," Tommy said.

"He was ooze. He probably oozed himself back together," Meredith said.

"Like in 'Terminator,'" Rocky asked.

"Seems like a logical assumption. I just don't know how the molecules held together in outer space," Billy said.

"Guess it doesn't matter how it happened, the point is he's back and we have another fight on our hands," Tommy said.

Just then the alarms started blaring in the Command Center.

"Rangers, he's landed in downtown," Alpha said.

"I guess our only hope of keeping Ooze down is to relock him in his chamber," Billy said.

"ALPHA AND I WILL DELIVER THE HYPERLOCK CHAMBER TO YOU WHEN YOU HAVE DEFEATED IVAN. OPENING THE PORTALS WILL SEND HIM INTO THE CHAMBER AND WE WILL SEND HIM INTO A DIMENSION THAT CAN'T BE ACCESSED ONLY BY ME SHOULD SEAL OOZES' FATE."

"Ready guys? It's morphin' time," Tommy said.

Everyone morphed into the power rangers and teleported to downtown.

"Is it me or did he get uglier. Gross," Kimberly said.

"This gigantic booger needs to be wiped," Rocky said.

Meredith turned to her boyfriend. "That's the DUMBEST thing I've ever heard," she said.

Rocky shrugged his shoulders.

Tommy assessed the situation. Ivan stood 500 feet tall, towering over downtown.

"Let's go, guys," he said.

"We need ninja megazord power, now," they said.

One by one their zords answered the call and they took the helm of the megazord.

Ivan was angry. That made up for the difference in firepower. Ian was determined to destroy the rangers for trying to destroy him and for destroying his zords.

"Man, he's pissed," Adam said.

"You would be too if you got busted in the balls and slammed into a comet," Rocky said.

"Come and get me," Ivan teased the rangers.

"Ok, fearless leader, ideas," Kimberly asked.

Ivan struck them with his sword and sparks began flying out of the control panels.

"Any ideas would be welcomed. Now's not the time to become the strong silent type, Tommy," Kimberly shouted at Tommy.

Ivan spewed electrified ooze toward the megazord, causing a huge explosion. Rocky, seated in the middle, was the one caught in the blast. It knocked him out of the chair and he was passed out on the floor of the cockpit.

"ROCKY," Meredith screamed.

She wanted to check on Rocky, but knew she now had to control both her controls and his. She hoped her brother had an idea. She cast looks between the window and the passed our form of Rocky. "Rocky, come on. Wake up," she said, trying to control the zord. Rocky started moving around on the floor and Meredith turned her attention back to the fight.

Ivan started advancing on the megazord. Just as he was about to strike, the megazord leveled a kick in his midsection and he went down. Tommy told Alpha to activate the chamber, which pulled Ivan inside. It was sealed and Alpha teleported to some unknown dimension.

They powered down and returned to the command center.

Tommy, who hadn't uttered a word since the formation of the megazord, was pissed. Meredith didn't even have to see her brother to feel the anger radiating off of him.

Not wanting to witness what was about to happen, she took off to the medical room. She knew Rocky had regained consciousness, but she wanted to make sure he was fine.

She was stopped by Aisha and Adam, both curious about Tommy's behavior.

"Just stay out of his way. Trust me. He's pissed, which isn't good. And he's pissed at Kimberly which is ten times as bad. The only thing worse is if he's pissed at me," she said.

The yellow and black rangers understood and teleported to out of the command center. Meredith wanted to find Rocky and continued on her course.

She felt Tommy's anger and knew she had to get away from the command center. She entered the medical bay and found Rocky. He was just buttoning his shirt after getting the OK from Alpha and Zordon. "Hey, babe," he said.

"Are you OK," she asked, helping him button his shirt. "Just a little headache. Zordon said the suit protected me from the burns, but the shock knocked me out. I'm going to be fine," he said, grabbing his girlfriend's hand. He pulled her closer and kissed her."Can we get out of here," she asked him.

"Sure. Everything OK," he asked.

"Tommy's mad and I want to be as far away as I can," she said.

Rocky nodded and took her hand. They teleported to the park.

The arrived in a secluded cove. Rocky took off the over shirt he was wearing and put it on the rock. He helped Meredith sit down. She leaned into him and he wrapped his arms around her.

"That was scary," she said.

"Yeah. Ivan was scary the first time around, but the second… Wow," he said.

"That's not what scared me. I mean, yes, Ivan was scary, but you scared me," she said.

"Babe, I'm fine," he said.

"I know that, NOW. But when you went flying and hit the back of the cockpit and didn't move, I was scared. I thought something had happened to you. I wanted to rush to you, but I knew I had to control both our controls or we would all be in trouble. Plus, Tommy would have yelled at me. Anyway, it got me to thinking," she said.

"About what," he said, leaning back against the rock formation behind him. He closed his eyes as Meredith snuggled closer. The breeze off the water was a little chilly, but it was refreshing to be able to feel it after that hard fought battle.

"About us. Our relationship," she said.

Rocky sat up and looked at her. "You don't want to break up do you? Do you want to give up your powers? Do you want me to," he asked. His eyes were filled with uncertainty. Meredith was sure he'd cry if she said yes, but that wasn't what she was thinking.

"We've been together for a while and I love you so much," she said.

"I love you, too," he said.

"Well, after realizing that we could be killed at anytime, we should take opportunities when they arise," she said.

Rocky nodded his head, but then stopped and looked at his girlfriend. "Babe, are you talking about sex," he asked. They had discussed it, but that was the only thing they had done.

"Yes. I think it's time that we did something about our lack of it," she said, smiling at Rocky.

"Are you sure," he asked her.

"Yeah, but not here. My parents are gone and, knowing how mad Tommy is, he won't be home for a while," she said.

Rocky got her meaning. He kissed her and pressed his forehead to hers. "Are you sure," he asked again. That's what Meredith loved about him. She had told him she wanted to have sex and he'd asked, not once but twice if she was sure. If it was what she wanted. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, passionately. They teleported back to Meredith's house and into her bedroom. Rocky pushed Meredith against the door.

"Oh, my God. Are you OK," he asked her.

"Yeah. Stop worrying about me," she said.

She pushed him back into the room and in front of the bed. She pushed him down and landed on top of him.

Soon their clothing was flying in different directions as they claimed something from each other.

Hours later, the couple was wrapped up in the sheets and each other, totally exhausted.

"That was amazing," Meredith said.

"It was. I love you, Meredith," Rocky said.

"I love you, too, Rocky," she said.

They kissed and finally surrendered to the sleep they desperately needed.

Tommy was pissed. That much Kimberly she didn't know was why.

"Tommy, are you going to talk to me," she asked him.

He reached out and grabbed her elbow and activated the teleportation. They arrived in the woods behind the command center.

Kimberly sat on one of the downed trees they often sat on when they were there. Tommy was pacing back and forth in front of her. She recognized the pacing. He was really mad and trying to figure out how to talk to her without going crazy.

"Why don't you trust me? Why do you have to undermine me when we're out there," he asked her. The way he spoke, in a near whisper, scared Kim."What are you talking about? I trust you," she said not believing what she was hearing.

"You don't, Kimberly. If you did, you wouldn't have told me to do something," he said.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know what was happening. I thought you were thinking about the last time we met with Ivan and then Rocky got hurt. I thought you would suddenly be worried about Meredith. I was thinking you were going to order her to stay at her post. But, like you, she has that ranger ethic. Do the job and save the world," she said.

"Kim, I love you. You need to trust me to do the best for the team. Seeing Rocky get hurt did scare the hell out of me and I was worried about how everyone was going to react. I wasn't worried about Meredith. She knew what her job was. She knows what being a ranger means. I was scared something was going to happen to you because you sit right next to him. I thought you got hit, too. When I realized you hadn't, I had to refocus and I realized, for the first time that if I didn't do the right thing, not only would I hurt or kill myself, but I'd do the same to you AND my sister. I can't lose you. I can't lose Meredith," he said.

Kimberly got up and flung herself into Tommy's arms. He kissed the top of her head and they teleported to Kim's bedroom.

It was a scene the couple had repeated several times over the last few months. Tommy knew Kimberly felt more comfortable in her own house when no one was home, then in his house where his sister could be around. Kimberly jumped into his arms and Tommy carried her to the pink bed. He came down on top of her, the whole time kissing her.

They fell asleep shortly afterward, the fatigue from the battle and the euphoria from their recent activities wearing off.

After witnessing his best friend nearly get fried, Adam was grateful everyone came out of the fight in one piece. He hurried to Trini's house, hoping she was able to take a break from studying. Trini was trying to get an internship with the state of California. Adam was certain she would get it, but right now, he just wanted to hold her and make sure everything was OK.

He rang the doorbell at the Kwan house and was greeted warmly by Trini's mom.

"Adam, it's wonderful to see you. Trini said you had something to do and she wasn't sure if she would see you tonight," she said.

"I did, Mrs. Kwan, but I finished early and I had to see Trini," he said.

"Go on upstairs, dear. She's studying, but I'm sure she could use a break," she said.

Adam thanked her and went upstairs to Trini's room. He knocked on the partially opened door and was greeted by her warm smile.

Adam rushed into the room and took her in his arms and kissed her.

When they broke apart, Trini looked at her boyfriend, concern filling her dark eyes.

"What's wrong? Did something happen," she asked.

"Rocky got hurt and we nearly lost," he said. "I had to see you and make sure we really did win."

"I'm sorry. Is Rocky OK? How's Meri taking it," she asked.

Adam smiled. Trini was like that, always concerned for her friends, even though she wasn't a ranger any longer. She knew what it was like to fight with your friends and Adam was forever grateful that he had Trini to talk to about being a ranger.

"Rocky's fine. He's got a hard head. Meredith was scared, but she's an Oliver. She's more like Tommy than I ever thought. She worried about Rocky, but remained focused on the immediate threat to us and the world. I don't know how she did it. If it had been you, I don't think I could have kept such focus," he said.

"I don't think I'd be able to either. I'm almost glad when I don't know you're having a battle because then I don't worry so much about you and my friends. I'm just glad that everyone came out of it OK," she said.

"Think your mom would get upset if I hung around here for a while? This thing with Rocky just has me worried and I don't want to be alone right now," he said.

"Don't see why not. Hold on," she said. She left her room, leaving Adam sitting on the bed.

"Mom," she called downstairs.

"Yes, Trini," her mom answered.

"Would you mind if Adam stayed upstairs with me for a while? Rocky got hurt this afternoon and Adam's feeling a bit bummed about it. His parents are out of town this weekend and I'd hate for him to be by himself if he's worried about his friend," she said.

"Poor Rocky. Poor Adam. He's welcomed to stay. If he wants to stay in the guest room that is fine, but you have to observe curfew. He's in that guest room, sleeping, by 12:30," her mom said.

Trini knew what her mom was getting at, but she didn't have to worry. As much as she and Adam were in love, they weren't going there. At least not now. She was waiting for a special moment and having sex in her house while her parents were just down the hall wasn't her idea of special. She kissed her mom and went back upstairs.

"Hey, mom said you could stay in the guest room, as long as you were in there, sleeping by 12:30," she told Adam.

"That's awesome. I'd feel better if I was close to you for the next few hours. This has me rattled more than I thought," he said.

"Well, how about we watch a movie," she said.

"Works for me," he said. He got off the bed and approached her. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. "I love you," he whispered in her ear. She giggled.

"I love you, too," she whispered back.

They went to the family room to watch a movie. After everything that happened that day, they selected a comedy.

Aisha met up with Zack at the Juice bar. He was teaching a dance class to a group of younger kids. He saw her come in, so she went to a table and ordered a smoothie. When the class was finished, Zack joined her at the table.

"Want to talk about it," he asked her.

"Yeah, but not here," she said.

He got up and offered his hand. They walked out of the Juice Bar and down to the Beach. It was nearly deserted for the time of day, but Aisha wasn't complaining.

"What happened," he asked her ten minutes later.

"Rocky got hurt," she said.

"Is he OK," Zack asked.

"Yeah. He and Meredith took off when he got cleared by Zordon. She was stressed. I don't know how she kept it together. If that had been you, I would have been a mess," she said.

Zack stopped their walk and turned her toward him. He placed his hands on her upper arms."Look at me," he said. "I'm not going anywhere. You don't have to worry about me. I'm worried about you. I know what it's like up there. There's that first time you come face to face with actually losing and you realize how close you've come so many other times before. It makes you stop and think and get how precious everything is to you," he said.

"Zack, does anyone else know how insightful you are," she asked him.

"No, so you better not tell them," he said, smiling at her.

They continued walking down the beach before Aisha pulled on his hand. "Remember when we were talking about whether of not we should have sex," she said.

"Yeah," he said, slowly.

"Well, despite how close it seemed that we were coming to meet our maker, I'm still not ready," she said.

"Aisha, you had me worried for a minute there. I'm not there, either. I like what we have. Why complicate it? When the times right, we'll know it," he said.

Aisha smiled and kissed Zack. This is why she loved the boy. He was a player and a flirt to so many, but he was so sweet and understanding to her and their friends.

"I love you, Zack," she said.

"I love you, too," he said.

Jason had watched the battle of TV and knew what his friends were thinking. Katherine had been glued to the TV. She knew of his past as a ranger, but she had yet to find out that her closest friends were rangers.

When the battle was finished, both of them were relieved.

"Jason, I can't believe you used to be a ranger. How do you handle those situations," she asked him.

"I didn't really think about it. I just did what I had to do to save the world. I didn't really think about myself, just my teammates and the rest of the world," he said.

"I still don't believe it," she said.

Katherine got up off the couch and started walking around the living room."What's the matter, Kat," he asked her.

"I've got something to tell you," she said.

Jason swallowed. He couldn't imagine anything good she had to say to him would start with that particular sentence. "What, Kat," he asked.

She took a deep breath and turned around to face him. "I want to sleep with you," she said.

The sudden admission took Jason by surprise. He had been expecting a lot of things, but that definitely wasn't it.

"You what," he asked, not sure he heard hear correctly.

"I want to sleep with you," she said, slowly so he understood.

"Really," he asked. She nodded her head and walked back to him on the sofa. She straddled his lap and ran her fingers through his hair. "Yes," she whispered in his ear.

Jason took a sharp intake of breath as she kissed him. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her shirt over her head.

She followed his lead and pulled his shirt off. It didn't take long before Jason and Kat were together on the sofa. Not the most romantic thing he had in mind, but Kat didn't seem to mind.

Afterward they lay on the couch, covered by the blanket from the back. Jason kissed Katherine's hair, amazed at what just happened.

"I love you," he said.

"I love you, too," she answered.

***So now we know who has done it and who hasn't. It will be important later! Hope you all liked this one. The next one is called 'Hell.' It won't be pretty, so you've had two nice fluffy chapters before it gets serious. See you soon!*** -mereditholiver


	9. Hell

DISCLAIMER: I borrowed this idea and am making it my own. Meredith is an original. Anything else like the Power Rangers and whatnot, don't belong to me. I'm just doing this for fun and to prove that I can.

HELL

It was an ordinary day. There was nothing about the day that would make it stand out in anyone's mind. No one would think this day was anything to remember.

Much like when the Challenger exploded or what their parent's were doing when Kennedy was shot, they would have almost photographic recall of everything they had been doing that day, right up until it struck. Each one of them would remember something else about that day; a memory that would eventually send the events rushing back to the surface. And the day wouldn't have meant anything to nine close friends until the phone rang at Adam's house.

He had been working on his homework. That's what he would remember about that day. He'd been doing something as ordinary as his homework while tragedy loomed just beyond his reach. Adam was a power ranger and he viewed evil and destruction in universal terms. So while he'd been working on his homework, a human element was about to turn his life upside down, sending him into a personal hell and no one knew he if he could crawl out.

He was busy trying to figure out a problem for his math homework. When the phone rang, he ignored it. He was studying and he doubted it would be for him. Trini had been accepted as an intern at the state capitol. She worked there two days a week, Tuesday and Thursday. She drove home after each work day. She still attended school, but the internship counted as a work-release so she was getting school credit for it. Adam knew Trini was enjoying it, but he missed her. He looked up at the picture on his desk and smiled. He couldn't wait to see her tomorrow.

He turned back to his homework. He was writing down an answer, when his mom came to his door.

"Adam, I have to talk to you," she said.

Adam looked up at his mom and noticed she was crying. Immediately thinking something terrible had happened to his father or grandparents, Adam stood up. "What happened, mom? Is everything OK," he asked.

"No son, I'm afraid it isn't," she said. She guided him to his bed and he sat on the edge of it. His mother was scaring him and he was almost certain he was getting some horrible news about someone important in his life.

"Son, Trini was in a car accident coming home from Sacramento this evening," she said.

"Oh, my God! A car accident. I have to get to her. I have to know that she's OK," he said, getting a bit hysterical.

His mother placed her hand on his shoulder, holding him to the bed.

"Oh, Adam. Trini was pronounced dead at the scene. There was nothing they could do for her. No one's exactly sure how it happened," his mom said.

Adam stopped listening. There was nothing anyone could do. Adam felt totally helpless. He only heard the words 'dead' and 'Trini.'

He stared. Not really focusing on anything. He just stared. That's how he felt his future was, nothing to focus on, nothing to see.

Mrs. Park was concerned. Adam hadn't reacted since she had delivered the news. She knew her son was in shock and didn't know what to do. She left him on his bed, kissed the top of his head and headed downstairs to the phone. She knew his friends would be hurting right now, but she didn't think Adam needed to be alone. She called the DeSantos house.

Rocky answered the phone. Mrs. Park knew he had just heard the news. "Rocky, this is Adam's mom," she said.

"Mrs. Park, does Adam know? How is he," Rocky asked.

"Can you come over? I think he's in shock. He hasn't said a word since I told him," she said.

"Yeah, Meredith and I will be there. The rest of the gang will probably want to check on him. We're on our way," Rocky . Park thanked him and hung up the phone. She went into the kitchen and started cooking. That's what she did when tragedy struck, she fed everyone.

Rocky and Meredith arrived at the house 15 minutes later. Mrs. Park let them in and wasn't surprised to see Meredith with red eyes and tear streaked cheeks. She offered a small smile, but she held a tight grip on Rocky's hand.

"He's in his room," she said.

Rocky led Meredith to Adam's room. Rocky knocked on the door, but pushed it open with his foot.

Adam was still sitting on his bed, staring at nothing. Rocky looked at Meredith. She knew he was concerned. He'd never seen Adam like this. Granted they'd never experienced death except with their grandparents, so Rocky really wasn't sure HOW anyone is supposed to react when the person they loved deeply was taken from them.

"Hey man. Want to talk about it," Rocky asked, kneeling in front of him. He looked up at his friend and saw his dark eyes glistening with unshed tears. Meredith sat down on the bed next to him. She motioned to Rocky to sit next to him on the other side. Meredith put her arm around Adam and leaned into his shoulder. The strong façade she'd been trying to hold onto, crumbled and she cried into Adam's shirt. Feeling Meredith's tears on his shoulder, Adam turned to look at her. The pain in his face broke Meredith's heart all over again. He wrapped his arms around her and, holding his best friend's girlfriend, cried. Rocky silently let his tears fall.

Meredith and Adam were still crying and holding each other when the rest of their friends arrived. Kimberly didn't say a word, she just moved next to Meredith and Adam turned to face her. She wrapped him in a hug and Adam continued to cry.

MEREDITH AND TOMMY

Rocky had been working out with Meredith when Tommy showed up. Dr. Oliver had gotten a phone call from a colleague at the hospital regarding a car accident victim. The doctor knew that Dr. Oliver's son and daughter were good friends with her, so they had called to let him know his children's friend was dead.

Tommy, who was downstairs working out, was called upstairs by his father.

Dr. Oliver delivered the terrible news to his son. He saw Tommy's eyes gloss over and a few tears slip away.

"I'm going to call Meri at Rocky's and let her know," Dr. Oliver said.

Upon hearing the name of his sister, Tommy wiped his face. "No, Dad, I'll go over there and tell her," he said.

Dr. Oliver looked at his son. "Are you sure," he asked.

"Yeah, I think she's going to need to hear it from me," he said.

Tommy grabbed a shirt from the back of the chair and headed outside. He got in his Jeep and drove to Rocky's house. He probably shouldn't have driven, but he was used to piloting huge zords while under amazing amounts of stress. He arrived at the DeSantos house and bypassed the front door for the back patio. He knew they'd be in the back sparring.

When Meredith saw Tommy, she stopped what she was doing. She knew her brother well enough to know that grief surrounded his walk.

She went rushing to him as Rocky's mom came outside.

"Tommy, what's wrong," she asked him.

"Meri, there's been an accident," he said.

"What kind of accident," she said, steeling herself.

"There was a car accident involving Trini," he said.

Meredith's face fell. She looked at her brother and knew. "She's dead, isn't she," she said.

Opening his arms, he nodded his head. Meredith fell into them and started sobbing in his shirt.

Rocky's mom delivered the same news to him and he walked over to the siblings. Meredith's gut wrenching sobs got to both Rocky and Tommy.

Rocky, with tears falling as well, looked at Tommy. "You should get Kimberly. I'll take Meri inside and watch out for her," he said. Rocky's heart was heavy with grief. He hadn't known Trini as long as Meredith and Tommy, but he knew his childhood best friend would have a broken heart.

Meredith moved into Rocky's embrace and Tommy silently thanked Rocky and headed for Kimberly's.

Rocky guided Meredith inside. He sat her on the sofa and brought her a glass of water. She held onto the glass but didn't drink it. She wasn't aware of anything going on around her. She just knew she had a hole in her heart that had once belonged to her friend, Trini. She looked at Rocky and started crying all over again.

Tommy arrived at Kimberly's and wasn't surprised when she came flying out the door. He caught her and held on to her as she sobbed. Kimberly and Trini had been best friends since kindergarten. Tommy didn't know what to do for her, anymore than he knew what to do for Meredith. He could only do the one thing that Meredith had said was a big comfort to her. He provided the arms and the strength that Kimberly was going to need. He just hoped that he didn't have a breakdown himself. Trini was always good to him and the first to talk to him after the whole evil green ranger thing. Trini was the natural peacemaker. What they would do without her sunshine in their lives was anyone's guess.

KIMBERLY

She had taken a break from her practicing at the gym. She had a slight sprain to her wrist and her coach said for her to lay off the training for a few days. She still worked out, but wasn't allowed near the beam or floor until he cleared her.

She had been upstairs in her room, putting her completed homework in her backpack. She was listening to music when the phone rang. She snatched it up, thinking it was Tommy calling to say he was on his way over.

"Hello," she said.

"Kimberly," came the sobbing voice of Mrs. Kwan.

"Mrs. Kwan, what's wrong," Kimberly asked.

"Trini was… Trini was in an… accident. Kimberly, Trini…was…killed," came the halted reply from her best friend's mother. Kimberly was speechless. Her heart was broken. She didn't know how she got the words out to ask what happened.

Mrs. Kwan told Kimberly the details in halting sobs. She hung up the phone and dropped on her bed. She was vaguely aware of Tommy's Jeep turning into her driveway. Without checking, she propelled herself out of the house and into the arms of her white knight.

Tommy wrapped her in his strong arms. Kimberly cried. The realization hit her and she collapsed. Tommy, expecting Kimberly to drop, carried her inside and sat her on the couch. Tommy kept his silent sentry while Kimberly cried. Tommy knew he would cry, but he couldn't. Not when Kimberly needed him to be strong so desperately. He couldn't let on that he was about to fall apart.

Kimberly cried. Every time she stopped, she imagined another event that Trini was going to miss. Wedding, births, birthdays and graduations. She thought of all the phone calls she was never going to share with her. All the trips to the mall that would be without her. All the walks to their classes. Their group would be minus one now. How were they going to go on without her? How would they all work around not having her in the group? What was Kimberly going to do without her best friend from childhood? She knew she had Meredith and Aisha, but Trini had been with her from the beginning. She was the one, along with Jason, that had held her hand during the divorce of her parents. Trini was the one that convinced her parents to let Kim stay with them whenever the fighting got out of hand and, later, when her mom was out with this guy or that guy. Trini had been her rock.

"What am I going to do, Tommy," she asked him.

"Don't know what any of us are going to do. We'll get through this, but it's going to be hard. I'm here for you," he said.

Tommy held Kimberly for a while before she looked up at him.

"I want to check on Adam," she said.

Tommy nodded and helped her out to the Jeep. They drove to the Park house.

ZACK

Zack was working on a new routine when he got the phone call. He bypassed the phone and got a sandwich out of the fridge. His mom called downstairs and said Jason was on the phone.

He picked up the phone and greeted Jason while chewing his sandwich. "What's up man," he said, through the bread in his mouth."Bro, you need to sit down," Jason said.

Zack noticed Jason sounded like he'd been crying. He grabbed a stool and sat down.

"What man," Zack asked.

"It's Trini. She's dead," Jason said. Zack heard his breath catch and realized he had heard exactly what Jason said.

"She's what," Zack asked, hoping he HAD heard wrong."She was killed in a car accident," Jason said. "I got to go, bro," Jason said suddenly and hung up the phone.

Zack stared at the phone in his hand. His mom came down stairs and immediately asked her son why he was staring at the receiver.

"Got some news. Trini was killed today," he said, putting the phone back on the hook. He walked past his mom and out the door. He had only one destination in mind and that was to find Aisha and make sure she was OK.

He took the woods to her house, running the whole way.

He arrived at the Campbell's and his knock was answered by her father.

Mr. Campbell said nothing except open the door wider and allow Zack into the house. Aisha was crying with her mom on the couch. Zack rushed over and sat down next to her.

"Oh, Zack. How could this have happened," she sobbed.

Zack shook his head, offering no audible answer. Aisha sobbed into his chest, Zack arms around her.

Zack cried along with his girlfriend. Trini and he had been friends since they entered school. Their dads worked together and so, naturally, they played together as kids. The maintained a friendship all through high school. It was one that had worked very well for them. It was actually Trini who suggested Aisha take over her powers when she decided to step down.

Zack felt lost. Trini was always someone who was there in his life. Now, that someone was gone. There wasn't anything he could do to change things.

He held Aisha as she cried. He wasn't sure what he could do for her, but he was going to just be there.

AISHAShe had just returned home from a shopping trip with her mother. Her father met them outside. He told Aisha he had something to tell her. She went upstairs and put her purchases on the bed and came down stairs.

Her mother was in tears. Aisha immediately feared the worst.

"What, dad," she asked.

"Your friend, Trini, was killed in a car accident this afternoon," he said.

Aisha looked back and forth between her two parents. 'This couldn't be true, could it,' she thought to herself.

She looked at her parents. The grief-stricken look on her mom and the saddened look in her father's eyes, told her it WAS true.

Aisha collapsed on the couch. Her mother sat down next to her and held her as she wept. No amount of tears seemed enough to help cleanse the darkness she felt in her soul. She was a power ranger and faced death pretty much everyday. There was always a chance that the power that was supposed to protect them would fail. Zordon had told them that those who were and are rangers would be protected by the power. Aisha hated to think it, but it hadn't done anything to save Trini.

Aisha was so consumed with her grief that she didn't hear the knock on the door.

She wasn't aware anyone had come inside until she felt Zack's hand on her back. She immediately fell into his arms and cried on his shoulder. She knew his grief ran deep. He'd been friends with Trini since kindergarten. He, Jason, Kimberly and Billy had known each other long before she and the others had moved to town. Trini may have become a close friend of hers, but she was Zack's oldest friend.

The two sat on the couch in the Campbell living room sobbing and holding each other before Zack suggested they check on Adam.

They got up off the couch and walked out the door. Adams house was a mile away and they decided to walk, not trusting themselves to drive and not wanting Aisha's parents to witness the grief between them.

JASON

Jason came in the back door of his parent's house. He'd just dropped Katherine off at a dance rehearsal and was coming home to shower and change. He'd worked out that afternoon at the Youth Center, surprised that he hadn't met up with Tommy or Rocky that afternoon.

He saw a note from his parents. They were going out to celebrate their anniversary and left him money for pizza. He grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and was headed to shower when the phone rang. He grabbed the cordless phone.

"Hello," he said.

"Jase. I don't know how to tell you this," he heard Meredith say.

"What's up, Meri," he said. His ex-girlfriend sounded off.

"Trini. She was killed this afternoon in a car accident," she said before she started crying.

"What," he said.

"Jason, hey, Trini was killed and Meri wanted you to know," Rocky said.

"Thanks, Rock," Jason said, hanging up the phone.

He dropped down on the stairs he had been climbing. He hung his head. His closest childhood friend was dead. It didn't seem real.

He rubbed his face with his hands, well aware that the tears were coming.

Holding his head in his hands, Jason cried.

He cried over the loss. He cried for his friends. He cried for everything that was going to miss Trini's wonderful touch.

He sniffled and wiped his face. He picked up the phone and called the dance studio. Katherine wasn't as close to Trini as the other girls, but he knew she would want to know.

"Can I speak to Katherine Hilliard? This is an emergency," he said.

He held for a few minutes before Katherine's lilting accent came on the line.

"What's the matter, Jason. They said you were on the phone about an emergency," she said."Trini's been killed," he said.

"I'll be right there," she hung up the phone. He called Zack and relayed the information and sat down on the couch. He didn't even remember calling Zack and telling him.

He didn't know how long he sat there. He was sitting there one minute and the next thing he was falling into Katherine's arms.

He was aware of her tears hitting his neck, but he didn't care. A dear friend was gone and he'd been unable to do anything to save her. He felt powerless for the first time in his life.

KATHERINE

She got the phone call from Jason and asked one of the teachers who was leaving for a ride to Jason's house. She was worried about her boyfriend. The teacher had dropped her off at his house and she walked inside, not bothering to found Jason staring into the dark. When she sat next to him and wrapped her arms around him, his sobs causing her heart to ache. She was heartbroken at Trini's death. The girls, particularly Trini, had welcomed her into their group without question. She WAS the sunshine of their crew. She wondered how Adam was handling things. She didn't have an idea how she would be if something happened to Jason. She held him while he cried, her tears slipping down her cheeks. Katherine realized she was going to be the strong on in their relationship during this situation.

BILLY

He knew. The minute Trini's life ended, he knew it. A piece of his heart that Trini had occupied went dark. He didn't want to see anyone. He didn't want to participate in a group grief session.

He looked at the pictures of him and Trini in his photo album. He wasn't aware he was crying until the tears dropped on the plastic sheets. One by one, his tears pooled on the photos, blurring his vision. Billy closed the album and went to his bed. He picked up the pillow and cried.

THE MEMORIAL

No one wanted to speak at the memorial, but Kimberly and Adam said they would. It was only fitting. Kimberly was Trini's best friend and Adam was the love of her life.

Kimberly stood and walked to the podium.

"Trini was my best friend. She was my shopping partner. She was my confidant. I could tell her anything and know it would be kept secret. She never had a bad thing to say about anyone and tried to befriend everyone we met. She was the sunshine of our group. I would give anything for that sunshine to come back. I love you, Trini," she said.

She placed her yellow rose next to the picture and went back to her seat. Tommy wrapped her in his arms and sniffled back his tears.

Adam took her spot. He took a deep breath and everyone was worried how he was going to handle had spent a lot of time with him while he was processing. He hadn't said much to Rocky except that it hurt like hell that she was gone. Rocky didn't know what he was going to say. Only last night had be gotten mad and sparred with him, revealing just how upset he was over the accident. Rocky saw Adam fall apart last night and hoped he could handle another emotional day.

"I love her. No amount of someone telling me that she's never coming back is going stop it. I love her smile, the twinkle in her eyes, the sound of her voice. I love everything about her. She isn't just my girlfriend, my first love, she's my best friend. She understands me like no one else. She's here, in my heart and as long as I'm living and breathing, I will love her," Adam said. He sat his rose on the table by the picture and mouthed 'I love you' before sitting down.

Adam was in a personal hell. He knew that his friends were going to be there. Together they were going to get through it together. It wasn't going to be easy, but they were going to get out of this hell as a team.

***Well, what did you think? I hope I covered it well. The next installment is 'Breathe Again.' Thanks to Ghostwriter and Xranger 13 for the kind words. They helped me realize I need to keep going.*** -mereditholiver


	10. Breathe Again

Six months passed. A lot had happened to the group in those six months.

First, Jason was called to take on the gold ranger powers. This caused him to reveal the ENTIRE story about his group of friends to Katherine._Katherine laughed."What," Jason asked his girlfriend._

"_I kind of figured your friends were either current or former rangers. Makes sense how you always knew what they were doing," she said._

"_I don't believe it," he said._

"_Look, I'm with you and your friends a lot, so I picked up on the little things. But I don't understand why Zack gave up his powers," she asked._

"_He was chosen for the teen peace summit. He was all set to go, but his mom was injured in a car accident. He didn't want to leave her, so he stayed behind. He got back into being a 'normal' teenager. Trini gave them up because she wanted the internship and it required a lot of meetings and interviews. She didn't want to risk getting called away. Luckily, Adam and Aisha were capable of taking the powers," he said._

"_And you gave yours to Rocky. Why," she asked._

"_I didn't live up to the ideals of a ranger. I treated Meredith very badly when we were dating. I slept with someone while Meredith was dealing with Tommy and the whole evil green ranger thing. I didn't give her the time, I just worried about myself. I was selfish and realized that I had to give up my powers because I wasn't capable of making the right choices. Apparently, I've proven myself worthy again. I have a second chance. I'm not going to lie, I've missed it," he said._

"_I had no idea you and Meredith even dated," she said._

"_We did and it was pretty intense for a bit. We never slept together, but we fought on the battlefield together and we witnessed a lot that kind of forged our relationship. For a while, I was really sorry about us breaking up. Then I saw how happy Rocky made her and I realized that we had outgrown each other. Then I met you and realized you were the one I'd been waiting for the whole time," he said, kissing her._

"_Nice save, Scott," she said, kissing him back._

Now Jason was the gold ranger and he was determined to live up to the ranger standard.

Everyone had worried about Adam giving up his powers. He had discussed it at length with Rocky and Tommy before deciding that he wanted to keep fighting. He avoided situations that had everyone coupled up. He missed Trini. He knew he would go on with his life, but he still missed her.

Kimberly had to relinquish her ranger powers. She had made the Pan Global team, but the commitment required a lot of time and she couldn't possibly be a ranger during that time. She had asked Katherine to take the mantle of the pink ranger until Kimberly was finished. If Kimberly decided not to take the power back, Katherine would continue to fight as the pink ranger. Kimberly felt good about giving the powers to Kat. And with Jason now a ranger again, it seemed only fitting. Tommy was out of sorts the first time they'd had a battle. Kat had gotten thrown back and Tommy was upset when Jason went rushing to her aid. It was only then that he realized that it wasn't Kimberly. It still didn't feel real that Kimberly wasn't fighting with them.

There was one other significant event that happened during those six months.

A new student moved into town. She was a cousin of Aisha's and was living with her. Aisha's cousin, Tanya, had been orphaned a few months previous when her parents were killed in a car accident. Aisha's mom, who was Tanya's dad's sister, agreed to take her orphaned niece into their home. Tanya's parents had been working in Africa as missionaries. Aisha brought Tanya to the Juice Bar after she arrived to meet everyone.

"Hey, guys, This is my cousin, Tanya Sloane. Tanya, these are my best friends. The guy in white is Tommy, the girl in pink holding his hand is Kimberly. That goofy guy in red stuffing his face is Rocky. The girl in purple is his girlfriend and Tommy's twin sister, Meredith. The boy in blue is Billy. You met Zack when we picked you up at the airport. He's teaching a dance class over there. The girl in the pink shirt practically drooling over the guy with the black and red karate gi is Kat and that guy is her boyfriend Jason. The other guy sparring with Jason in all black is Adam," Aisha said.

Tanya watched Adam. She was enthralled by his movements. He was so focused on what he was doing that he seemed oblivious to the activity going on around him. Tanya was amazed.

"Sit Tanya. Tell us a bit about yourself," Kimberly said, motioning to the empty seat across from her and Tommy.

"Well, I was born here, but moved with my parents all over the world. They were missionaries. They died in a car accident so I guess you could say I'm an orphan. I was at a boarding school in South Africa when it happened. Aisha's mom offered me a place to stay. I am touched by Aisha and her offers of help. I think we've met each other twice in our entire lives," she said.

"Hey, we're sisters, family," Aisha said.

"Well, anything we can do to help, just say the word," Tommy said.

"Thanks," she said. She and Aisha got up to get smoothies.

Just then Adam and Jason came to the table. "Are we all going to the movies tonight," he asked, kissing Katherine.

"Only if you shower first," she said to her , ever the mature one of the group, promptly stuck his tongue out at her."Hey, no sneak peeks of what you're doing AFTER the movie," Rocky said, which promptly earned him a smack. By both his sister and his girlfriend. Kimberly hit him in the head, Meredith got his stomach. The table exploded in laughter.

"Do we really have to have this kind of talk now. I mean aren't we a bit too mature for this," Meredith asked.

"Meri, just because you're uncomfortable doesn't mean the rest of us are," Jason said.

"Well, not everyone lives in the gutter like YOU do," she said.

This earned her the middle finger.

"If I hear one more kinky innuendo. I won't be responsible for my actions," Meredith said."Is that a promise," Rocky said, with a mile wide grin on his face. Meredith's cheeks reddened in embarrassment.

Tommy glared at Rocky. Jason's jaw hit the floor. Meredith swore she heard it crack when it hit the ground.

'Maybe that was worth it,' she thought to herself.

Aisha and Tanya rejoined the group at the table. "What did I miss," Aisha asked.

"Nothing much. Jason got schooled by Meredith. Hence the look," Adam said, smiling as he remembered.

"Hey, Jase. That's not a very attractive look for you," Aisha said. Meredith got up and used her pointer finger to push Jason's jaw back into a normal position. "You can stop it now," she said, before sitting back down."I'm just…" he started to say before Meredith cut him off. "You're surprised. So is Tommy and everyone else at this table. Now the show's over let's talk about something else. Like the movie we're going to see tonight," she said.

The group discussed the movie choices before deciding on a horror movie. They all made plans to meet at the cinema at 7. The movie started at 7:45 that night.

They all broke apart. Aisha left Tanya at the table to grab a minute with Zack to tell him about the movie.

Adam, who had gone to shower, stopped off at the table."Hope you're not too overwhelmed. We have a tendency to be a bit much when we're all together. Especially when Meredith is mad at Jason," Adam said.

"It was actually really nice and normal to hear. Everyone's been so cautious around me that I'm glad everyone is acting like themselves around me. It's refreshing. Why would Meredith be mad at Jason," Tanya asked.

"Long story, but the gist is a break-up that was pretty bad. Meredith is happy with Rocky now, but she still harbors a bit of anger at Jason. For what, I don't know, but they are still friends, so we let it go," he said.

"Are you coming to the movies tonight," she asked.

"Don't know. I haven't really been out with the group in a few months," he said, sadness creeping into his eyes."Oh, break up with your girlfriend and all these happy couples drive you crazy," she said, taking a drink of her smoothie.

"No, not like that. My girlfriend was killed in a car accident six months ago. I haven't gotten back in to the scene," he said.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know. Must be how people feel when they bring up their parents in front of me. I'm sorry," she said.

"It's fine. You didn't know. Maybe I'll see you at the movie. Can't have you get a sugar rush from all those sweet couples. Even Billy has a girlfriend now," Adam said.

"I'll see you there," she said.

Adam waved bye and headed out of the youth center. He put his bag in the back seat. When he turned back to get in the driver's seat, he found a yellow rose on the seat. He did a 360, looking for who set the rose on his seat. He picked up the rose. He smiled. For the first time since Trini died, he was actually looking forward to hanging out with the group in a couple setting. Then his smiled was immediately changed to a frown. He put the key in the ignition and drove to Meredith's house. He needed some perspective and he knew he'd get it from Meredith. He and Trini had usually doubled with her and Rocky because Rocky was his best friend.

He pulled into the driveway and walked to the front door. He rang the doorbell and waited.

Tommy answered the door. "Hey man. What's up," Tommy asked him.

"Is Meredith home? I need to talk to her," he said.

"Yeah. I'll get her. You want to wait downstairs," he asked. "I take it it's private."

"Do you mind," Adam shook his head. He pointed to the stairs and Tommy went up to get his sister.

He knocked on her bedroom door and Meredith called "come in."

"Hey, sis, Adam's downstairs. He wants to talk to you," Tommy said.

"Really," she nodded his head. Meredith put her book down and exited her room. Tommy went into his room. He figured whatever it was that brought Adam to Meredith had something to do with Tanya and Trini. Tommy smiled to himself. 'And Kim and Meri think I'm a bit dense,' he thought to himself.

Meredith went down stairs to find Adam."Hey. Tommy said you wanted to talk to me," she said.

"Yeah. I'm confused," he said.

"Is this about Tanya," she asked,

Adam nodded. Meredith smiled.

"What," he asked her.

"Welcome back. It's about time you found someone to spark your interest," she said.

"Yeah I'm interested, but Trini…" he said,

"You loved her. There's nothing that says you still can't love her. Trini would want you to be happy," she said.

"I found a yellow rose on my driver's seat. I had unlocked the door to put my bag away and, Mer, it WASN'T there when I unlocked the door. When I turned around, there it was," he said.

"Trini wants you to move on. You always said she was our sunshine. She can't be your sunshine if you're cloudy all the time. She wants you to shine again. That's what she said you did when you smile. You shine. She wants you to do that again. She thinks whatever move your going to make is a good one. She's going to be in everyone's heart and you won't forget her, but it's time to move on. If that's with Tanya, then it's with Tanya," she said.

"You think so, Meri," he asked.

Meredith nodded.

Adam gave her a hug.

"Thanks. That's what I thought, but I needed to hear it from someone else," he said.

"But why me," she asked.

"You saw us when we were all out together. I figured you'd be honest with me," he said.

"See you tonight," she said.

Adam went up the stairs and out the front door. Meredith went up after him and met her brother at the top of the stairs.

"Everything is fine. Adam's going to be just fine," she said to her brother.

"OK. I'll meet you guys at the movies. I'm heading over to Kim's house. Since she's not practicing thanks to that wrist, I'm going to get some extra time with her," he said.

"Just promise me you won't miss the movie," Meredith grinned and cocked an eyebrow. "You never know," he said before heading down the stairs. Meredith threw her shoe at the back of his head.

"PIG," she shouted at him. She was met with her brother laughing and the shutting of the garage door.

Meredith turned around and went back into her room. She picked out the clothes for the movies, changed and waited for Rocky.

At 7, everyone was at the movies, except for Adam.

Five minutes later, while standing in line to buy tickets, Adam showed up. He stood next to Tanya. "Sorry. Had to do something first," he said to Tanya.

They went into the movie. Adam sat with Tanya and, just like it was scripted, during all the scary parts, she buried her face in Adam's arm. Soon after, she settled against his shoulder and Adam had to admit he felt like he could breath again. His heart still missed Trini, but he knew he had to move on because he needed to and Trini wanted him to.

As he drove Tanya home that night, he admitted to her why he was late.

_Adam ran into the flower shop. He grabbed a bouquet of yellow roses, paid for them and headed to the cemetery. He walked the familiar path to Trini's grave. He stopped by the headstone and placed the flowers in the vase. He removed the wilted ones he'd placed earlier in the week. He sat on the ground by the headstone and stated talking."Trini, I got your message. I'm glad you approve of Tanya. She seems nice and even if I don't date her, it's nice to have another female friend. Especially one that doesn't remind me of you. Not that that's a bad thing, but I'm sure you know what I mean. Anyway, we're going to the movies tonight. It's supposed to be as a group, but seeing as how everyone in the group but Tanya and I are paired off, you know how it's going to turn out. I'm going to go and see what happens. Tanya is nice and she's pretty. She's not pretty like you, but pretty in a different way," he said, standing up. "I just want you to know that I'm always going to love you, but that I understand that you would want me to shine, so I'm going to do that. I love you, Trini and I miss you. I'll never, ever forget you and what you meant to me. What you meant to everyone. We all love and miss you," he said. He kissed his hand and touched the top of her headstone. With one last glance at the tombstone, he headed back toward his car. He knew he would be late, but he hoped he'd be forgiven. Especially when they found out where he'd been._"Do you feel better," Tanya asked.

"Yeah," he said.

"Good. Do you want to try this without the whole group," she asked him.

"Yeah. Will you come to the Juice Bar tomorrow," he asked.

"Sure. Why," she asked.

"Karate expo. All the guys are competing and so is Meredith. Tommy and Rocky are super proud of her because they've been training her for this. I'm competing," he said."I would love that. I'll ride with Aisha," she said.

"Great," he said. He got out of the car and rounded it to her door. He opened the door and helped her out.

He walked her to the front door and kissed her cheek.

"Until tomorrow," he said.

He walked back to his car after he saw Tanya enter the house. He drove home, smiling for the first in a long time.

***Adam is moving on with his life and Tanya may play an important role in it. Next installment is 'Memories.' Rita will make a monster that will bring up painful memories for the team, especially Adam. WILL he be able to move on with Tanya?*** -mereditholiver


	11. Memory

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the actual writing in this story and the character of Meredith. All other ideas, including those quotes I have stolen, belong to someone else. PR belongs to Saban and I'm just borrowing them for my own AU.

MEMORY

The rangers had slipped back into a comfortable pattern. Not even a putty or tenga had been sent to distract was grateful for the reprieve. It gave him plenty of time to think about Tanya. He really liked her and he felt she liked him, too.

The Moon

"We've been too quiet lately. We should attack them now," Rita said.

"They are all still suffering from grief. That human emotion. Wonder how those power brats would handle reliving those awful memories in their lives again. I can send down Memory Maven. She can cast a spell over the rangers and they will see their memories all over again, just like they were happening," Zedd said.

"What a great idea, Zeddie," Rita said, cackling.

They crossed their staffs and sent Memory Maven down to Angel Grove park.

Memory Maven, a white monster enveloped by a memory mist. She held a fan that directed the mist toward the person she was attacking. Her appearance let her blend in with the surroundings. She spied her first ranger, Adam, walking with the new girl, Tanya. She blew the mist and it enveloped Adam. Both coughed.

Adam and Tanya continued on their way with Adam dropping her off at Aisha's. He continued on his way to his house. When he arrived at home, he went to his room. He noticed his picture of Trini. He started remembering everything he and Trini had done together. Suddenly, the peace he had felt about hanging out with Tanya was gone. In it's place was the pain he'd felt when he found out that Trini had been killed.

He flung himself on his bed and cried.

Tanya was so glad to be away from Adam. She had thought she liked the boy, but she felt guilty for being happy when her parents were dead.

She went to her room and pulled out the photo album. She started crying as she looked at the pictures of her family. She remembered the last trip they had taken. They had traveled to New Zealand and gone scuba diving. Tanya had the best time and had hated it when her parents dropped her off at school and returned to their dangerous job. Tanya had known it was possible one or both would be killed by some rebels that didn't agree with their beliefs, but she hadn't counted on an accident and there not being a hospital in the entire country that could have saved them. She put her head in her hands and cried.

Memory Maven found the next targets in the same place. The remaining rangers and their friends were walking through the juice bar parking lot, heading toward the park. She enveloped them in her memory mist and disappeared as the group was affected.

The mist didn't affect them until they were alone. Tommy had driven Kimberly home. She went to her room and, while packing her gymnastics bag, started recalling those awful memories of Tommy as the evil green ranger.

"_News flash, Kimberly, not everything revolves around you," he had said to her. _

"_Well, you should know, pink ranger, that you and the other rangers, will be destroyed."_

Remembering the cold, evil way Tommy had spoken to her brought tears to her eyes. She felt like she was reliving this awful period in her life all over again.

She remembered their fight before they had to battle one of Rita and Zedd's monsters.

"_I apologized for being late. I was talking with Meri. She needed me," he had said to her._

_Meredith had just broken up with Jason, but didn't want anyone to know. Tommy hadn't wanted to leave her, so he had been late for his anniversary date with Kim. _

"_You're sister is suddenly more important than me," she had asked._

"_I'm not going to abandon my sister when she's crying her eyes out," he said, raising his voice slightly._

"_She has Jason. He can comfort her," Kimberly said."Jason's the reason she's crying," Tommy said."This was a big date for us. It's our anniversary," she said._

_Tommy didn't say a word for a minute. He looked at Kimberly, took a deep breath and said, "You said you loved how close I was to my sister. How I was always there for her. I'm sorry that the ONE time she needed me and I picked being with her over being on time for our date. That doesn't mean that I don't care about you. Meri's my sister. Let's do this tomorrow," Tommy said. He grabbed his sport coat off the couch and walked out of Kimberly's house. _

_Kim remembered how guilty she had felt. She called to apologize, but Tommy wouldn't talk to her for 24 hours._

_When they got summoned for a monster battle, Tommy hadn't said anything to Kim. He'd asked Meredith or Aisha to do what ever he needed. He barely acknowledged her presence. They fought the monster and defeated it, sending it back to where Rita had found it._

_Kimberly went right to Tommy's house after the battle. She had apologized and they had made up, but Kimberly had always felt horrible when she thought about how she'd acted. _

Kimberly sat down on her bed and cried.

Tommy entered his room and couldn't shake the memories that were washing over him.

"_It will soon be death to the power rangers,"_

"_Meredith, your brother is no longer the brother you thought. Get used to it."_

"_Nothing you can do to save your precious boyfriend. You're precious red ranger."_

Tommy was in pain. He was hurting from the pain of the memories. He was in pain remembering how awful he'd been to his sister and to his best friends.

Tommy didn't understand how someone who had said those awful things had been made the leader of the power rangers. How he could be happy with Kimberly. How he could still have the close relationship with Meredith that he had. How he could have a close friendship with Jason and the rest after trying to destroy them.

Tommy took his hair down and ran his fingers through his hair. The worst moments in his life were being replayed in his head and he couldn't stop them.

Aisha couldn't help but think about her grandmother. She was trying to do her homework when she remembered her death and funeral. Aisha wasn't sure why this painful part of her history refused to leave her mind, but it was upsetting.

She set her homework aside and went to the kitchen. She needed to get past the sadness that she thought she'd overcome. Aisha sat at the counter and just stared off into space.

Zack remembered, clearly, what happened between him and Angela. Zack was really happy with Aisha, but the pain of Angela's betrayal had cut him deep. He knew Aisha would never do that to him, but he'd thought the same of Angela, also.

"_What are you talking about? What do you mean you found someone else," he had asked her._

"_I found someone who is there for me. He's rich and will do anything for me that I ask," she had told him. She gathered up her stuff from the couch and walked out the door. _

_Angela had admitted she'd been cheating on him for three months with a guy she'd met at her parent's country club. He had money and all the things that Angela said she wanted._

While Zack believed Aisha would never do that to him, he couldn't help but wonder if she was just like Angela. He sat on his bed and thought about his and Aisha's relationship.

Jason had fallen asleep. He was very tired for some reason and had no idea why this was the case. He woke up from his unplanned nap sweating. He had balled the blanket around him, his t-shirt clinging to his chest like second skin.

He sat up and placed his feet on the floor.

He rubbed his face, trying to get the images out of his head.

"_My boyfriend and I had a fight. Can you give me a ride out of here," Emily had asked him._

"_Sure. Let me tell my friends I'll be leaving," Jason had said._

_He found Adam and told him he was going to give a friend a ride home. After seeing Adam nod his head, Jason returned to Emily who was standing at the front door._

_Jason followed her out the door, and being a gentleman, opened the passenger door of his truck and helped her inside._

_He rounded the truck, got in and started it up._

"_Want to give me directions," he asked."Yeah, but can we go by the lake first. I want to clear my head before I go home," she had said._

_Jason headed toward the lake. He hadn't been to the lake in a few weeks. He and Meredith usually went their together and she'd been preoccupied with what happened with Tommy, that they hadn't seen each other much._

_He pulled in the parking lot and turned off the truck. Emily was starting at the lake through the windshield._

_Jason had his hands still on the wheel. "So, where's Meredith? You two are always together," Emily had asked._

"_Her brother's having a rough time, so she's helping him out," Jason said, staring straight ahead._

"_Too bad. You know, I've always had a crush on you," she told him._

"_Really? I didn't know," he answered._

"_You've always been attached to Meredith," Emily said, moving closer to him in the front seat of the truck. _

"_She has been my girlfriend for a year," he answered._

_Emily had moved so he could feel her breath on his neck, right above his shoulder. He tried not to react, but it was hard to avoid it. As much as Jason liked to believe he was a man of strong moral and virtue, Emily was driving him crazy. And she hadn't touched him at all. He and Meredith had kissed and made out and TALKED about sex, but that was it. _

"_Jason, how would you like to make my dreams come true," she asked him, kissing his neck. Jason tried, he really tried, to resist. Soon, however, he was responding to her kisses and was caressing her like he'd been doing it all his life._

_Emily pulled Jason on top of her and pulled off his shirt. Eventually both were in the back seat of Jason's truck. _

_Shortly after he and Emily had sex. Jason was pulling his pants back on, shocked at what had just happened. Emily was fixing her clothes and looked at Jason._

"_What? Are you feeling guilty," she asked him._

"_Not really because I wanted to be with you. I could have stopped it, but I didn't. I feel guilty because I SHOULD feel guilty. I love Meredith and I shouldn't have done that with you, but I wanted to," he said._

_Emily smiled. "Well, I will always be available for you," she said._

_Jason pulled on his shirt and drove Emily to her house. He waited for her to get inside before driving away. _

That was the beginning of his sneaking around. It wasn't that difficult since Meredith was distracted by Tommy. Jason never forgot the pain in Meredith's face when he told her what he had done.

"_So because I was trying to process what had happened with my brother, my TWIN brother, you decided to ignore me and go after your physical needs. I was ready to tell you I wanted to sleep with you. Now, I'm really, really glad that we never did. Get the hell out of my house," she had screamed at him. _He knew he'd failed as a boyfriend and he had failed as a ranger. A true ranger wouldn't have treated their girlfriend, their best friend that way. Jason teleported to the command center and told Zordon he wanted to give his powers to Rocky. Zordon had not been surprised. He told Jason he would have asked him to hand over his power coin if he hadn't admitted what he had done and owned up to it. Rocky was given the power coin and Jason couldn't look him in the eye. Rocky didn't know why Jason had given up his power coin, but Rocky wasn't complaining. Jason said he was heading to Switzerland, despite Zack not going with him. Jason said he needed the time away and hoped everyone would understand.

Jason had left shortly after that.

He sat on his bed and pinched the bridge of his nose. The memories wouldn't stop invading his thoughts.

Katherine couldn't believe how childish she had been when she first arrived in town. She had fixated herself on one guy, who was obviously taken. She found herself hopelessly crushing on Tommy. Nothing she did drew his attention, but that didn't stop her from trying.

_Katherine stood at the Juice Bar, waiting for Tommy. She had sent a note to Kimberly asking her to meet Tommy in the park and sent a note to Tommy asking him to meet Kim in the Juice Bar. When Tommy arrived at the Juice Bar, he was_ _searching for Kimberly._

_Katherine pounced._

"_Hey, Tommy. Looking for someone," she asked._

"_Hey, Kat. Yeah, Kimberly. I got a note saying she was supposed to be here, but I'm not seeing her. Have you seen her," he asked._

"_I thought I did, but she was walking out with Jason," she said. _

"_Oh, maybe I misread the note. Well, I guess I should get in some practice," he said._

"_You could do that or you could let me get you a smoothie to thank you for helping me with my car," she said._

"_Well, I guess that would be OK," he said._

_They ordered smoothies and sat at the groups' usual table. _

_Katherine had tried flirting with Tommy the whole time. He kept talking about Kimberly. _

_When they finished, they walked outside. Tommy said he was going to go to Kim's house and see if she was there. Tommy had his back to the park entrance, but Katherine saw Kimberly walking toward the Juice bar._

_Katherine leaned over and tried to kiss Tommy, but Tommy immediately stopped her. "Katherine! What the hell are you doing? You know I love Kimberly and if you want to keep being friends with everyone, I suggest you remember that," he said._

_Kimberly called out to him at that moment and Tommy went toward her. Katherine was left feeling low and rejected. She got in her car and went home. _

She relived that moment like it was right in front of her. All the hurt and pain she'd experienced was right there for her to feel all over again.

She couldn't believe she'd actually been guilty of that. She loved Jason and couldn't believe she'd become so infatuated with Tommy. She sat on the floor of the family room and cried for how she had behaved.

Rocky was trying to work out, but his head wasn't in it. Instead he was reliving his breakup with Jennifer before he started dating Meredith.

"_Jenn, what is the problem," he asked her._

"_The problem is that you are distracted. You haven't focused on anything in the last 10 minutes. What's bothering you," she asked,_

_Rocky didn't realized he'd been distracted, but he couldn't help it. He'd seen Meredith crying after school and Tommy had ushered her off before he could ask what was wrong. He'd become close to the petite brunette with beautiful eyes. He hadn't seen her smile in a few days and that bothered him. She was beautiful anyway, but she was breathtaking when she smiled. He'd meant to talk to Tommy about it, but Tommy hadn't been around. _

"_Sorry. A friend of mine is having a problem and I'm concerned," he said, smiling at her._

"_A friend? Look, you're in love with Meredith Oliver. It's fairly obvious to me. I just can't believe you keep leading me on like this," Jennifer said._

"_What are you talking about," he asked._

"_You and I have been together for almost a year now and I thought we were heading for a serious step in our relationship," she said._

"_What, you mean sex? Whoa, Jenn, I'm not ready for that," he said. And he wasn't. The thought of sleeping with a girl that wasn't Meredith bothered him. He realized he wasn't being fair to Jennifer._

"_Well, I guess I should have known. I can't believe you would be such a cad, Rocky DeSantos. You're leading on your girlfriend, who may I remind you, you said you loved. You're actually in love with a girl that you're never going to have. I'm not going to play second fiddle to her. Have fun being alone because, why would Meredith want to be with YOU," she said, before she grabbed her stuff._

"_Jenn, I didn't mean to hurt you," he had said._

_He shouldn't have been surprised when her hand came across and slapped him. He stood in his living room, watching her as she slammed the door. _

_Rocky didn't know how long he'd been standing there before he walked out the back door to go to Meredith's house._

Rocky couldn't believe how he had neglected to take Jennifer's feelings into consideration when he found himself falling for Meredith. He wondered if Meredith hadn't broken up with Jason, would they have gotten together? Rocky found himself outside and sat on the porch swing. He wouldn't trade his relationship and feelings with Meredith for anything, but had be been a cad? Had he been a jerk for loving another while he was supposed to be in love with Jennifer? He didn't like the answers he was getting.

Meredith was crying. She had a sudden sense of sadness and loss. She remembered when Jason had admitted he had cheated on her, several times, with Emily.

The pain over his betrayal was fresh. She felt like her heart had been stomped.

She then remembered all the nasty things Tommy had said as the green ranger.

"_You didn't have a brother, Meredith, you had a puppet. Your brother doesn't exist any more. I will not follow you around.""I will destroy the power rangers and with them, your precious boyfriend. Why you would date that guy is beyond me. You deserve so much better."_

"_Your friends are pathetic, Meredith. I will enjoy watching them fall."_

Tommy's words, while not really his, had hurt her terribly. She wasn't sure why she was remembering these moments, but she couldn't stop thinking about those memories. Painful memories in her life, that she wished she could forget.

She tried to remember the happiness she had found with Rocky, but couldn't stop thinking about the hurt Jason had put her through.

She knew she was partially responsible for Rocky and Jennifer breaking up. He had said as much and she had been upset that she was the cause of something painful for hi. He had assured her that the breakup was for the best because he didn't love Jennifer like he was supposed to and was harboring feelings for her.

"_Meri, I care about Jenn. I really do, but I don't love her. I think I was trying and I was fooling myself and her to think that it was real," he said to her._

"_Did you break up with her because of me," Meredith had asked._

"_I'm not entirely sure. Jenn broke up with me, so there really isn't any reason for us to discuss it," he said._

_Meredith had known he wanted to kiss her, to be with her, but the pain of Jason's rejection and pain of Tommy's hurtful words. Meredith had left the park and gone home. _

Thankfully, Rocky had persisted and arrived a few days later to talk to her. She realized then that she was already in love with Rocky, despite everything that had already happened.

Billy was remembering his friendship with Trini. He had secretly loved her since junior high, but hadn't said anything. He was glad when she'd found Adam. He knew that Adam and Trini were happy together.

Billy had found a good relationship in Rebecca. She was smart and pretty and understood everything he said. They had the same interests and got along very well together.

Billy didn't know why he was remembering Trini. He wanted to remember her, but no the pain of losing her. He had returned from Aquitar after a few weeks away and shortly after that, Trini had died. He regretted missing that time with her, but if he hadn't gone, he would be dead. Trini had convinced him to go and Zack had filled in for him in his absence.

Billy let a few tears slip from his eyes before putting the album away and getting ready to meet Rebecca.

Meredith couldn't shake those painful memories until she remembered her love for Rocky and how they got together. Suddenly, all the painful memories were fading. She remembered them, but the grief from them wasn't rushing to the surface.

She blinked and realized she might have been under a spell.

"TOMMY," she yelled to her brother.

He came rushing through their adjoining bathroom and asked what was wrong.

Meredith noticed her brother had been crying. "Tommy are you having painful memories? Are you reliving things like the evil green ranger and the things that he said," she asked. Meredith had refused to acknowledge that he was the evil green ranger and often separated the two.

"Yes I have," he said.

"Anything else," she asked.

"The fight I had with Kim on our anniversary," he said.

"I remember that. That was because of me. I'm remembering the evil green ranger, the break up with Jason and realizing I'd ruined Rocky's relationship," she said.

"Meri, you didn't do that," he said.

Meredith shook her head. "Doesn't matter now. The point is, I think we got hit with a spell. Think Zordon and Alpha can find out," she asked.

"Worth a shot," he said. He pushed the button on his communicator. "Zordon, it's Tommy. Meredith thinks we've been hit with a spell, can you find out," he asked.

"PLEASE TELEPORT TO THE COMMAND CENTER AND ALPHA CAN PERFORM A BIOSCAN."

Tommy looked at his sister who nodded. They teleported to the command center where Alpha was prepared to scan them.

"Meredith was correct, Tommy. You are both under a spell. This should fix it," Alpha said.

He sprayed them with a mist and the bitterness and pain they felt disappeared. They could still conger the feelings of the bad memories, but they could also feel the good memories.

"We should find out if the other have been affected," Tommy said.

"Here. Spray this and it should fix them," Alpha said.

"RITA CREATED MEMORY MAVEN. I HAVE A FEELING AFTER EVERYONE IS RETURNED TO NORMAL, YOU WILL HAVE TO BATTLE HER. REMEMBER ALL THE GOOD TIMES YOU'VE HAD AS A GROUP. RITA WILL WIN IF YOU LET THE PAIN OVERWHELM YOU. SHE HOPES TO DRIVE A WEDGE BETWEEN YOU AND THE OTHER RANGERS AND YOUR FRIENDS."

"Got it, Zordon," Tommy said.

He and Meredith teleported to Kim's house, ending up in the back yard behind the shed.

Tommy knocked on the door and Kimberly came and answered it. Tommy knew she'd been crying and he help her while Meredith sprayed the antidote.

"Tommy it was awful. What happened," she asked him. "It was a spell. Come on we have to get the others. Zordon thinks this latest monster is going to materialize in the park soon," he said.

The trio teleported to the next house, Rocky's.

Meredith knocked on the door and Rocky's mom answered it.

"Meri, dear, how nice to see you. Rocky's in his room. He seems a little down. Is everything alright between you two," she asked.

"It will be. Can I go up and surprise him? I wanted to see if he'd like to go to the movies with Tommy and Kimberly," she said.

Rocky's mom smiled and nodded her head. Tommy and Kim sat on the sofa while Meredith ran upstairs. She knocked on Rocky's door and pushed it open without waiting for a response.

"Rocky, it's OK," she said.

When he heard her voice he jumped off the bed and wrapped her in his arms. "Oh, babe," he said.

Meredith sprayed him with the antidote.

"What's going on," he asked.

"Rita, monster, spell. The usual," she said. He smiled at her.

"You know I love you, right," he asked.

"I love you, too," she said, nodding her head. They shared a kiss and headed back downstairs.

"Is everything better, Rocky," his mom asked.

"Yeah, it was a stupid misunderstanding and everything is fine," he said.

She smiled at the couple, glad things were back to normal.

The four headed out the door and went to the next house.

They knocked on Aisha's door and found her with Zack. Meredith sprayed the antidote on both of them.

"Rita and a spell," Zack asked.

Kimberly nodded.

"Thank goodness. Those memories were really strong and painful," Aisha said.

They arrived at Jason's house next.

The former red ranger opened the door with tears streaming down his face.

"Meri, I'm so sorry for the way I treated you. I can't believe I was that selfish," he said, pulling Meredith into a hug. Meredith rubbed his back and told him everything was fine. Tommy sprayed the antidote and Jason immediately released his former girlfriend. "I didn't realize how horrible I had been," he said.

"Spells do that to you," Rocky said, trying not to react to Jason's hug of Meredith.

They went to Katherine's next and found her crying. She immediately apologized for her behavior when she first arrived and Meredith sprayed her. They told her about the spell and off they went to Billy's.

Billy, sensing it was a spell that was causing his pain, was waiting for them.

"I asked Zordon if he knew what was wrong and he assured me that you guys would come with the antidote," he said.

Meredith smiled at her friends insight. She sprayed him and they all went to find was worried Adam was caught in the pain of remembering the loss of Trini.

They arrived at the Park home just as Tanya was arriving. They were talking to her on the porch when Aisha sprayed her with the spray. It was tricky because Tanya didn't know or suspect she was under a spell. They had all decided that they would spray her, just to be safe.

Adam's mom answered the door and ushered the friends into the house.

"Adam's extremely upset. I don't know what's wrong with him. I called your house, Rocky, but your mother said you were out. Think you could help him," she asked.

"I'll see what I can do. Mer, you want to come with me," he asked.

Meredith and Rocky went to Adam's room and found their friend crying over a picture of Trini.

"Adam it's an awful spell from Rita. We're going to make you feel better," Meredith said as she sprayed the antidote.

Adam's pain eased, somewhat, but he was still hurting.

"Adam, what's wrong," she asked.

"What if I start seeing Tanya and something happens to her," Adam asked.

"Don't think that. If we all worried about what COULD happen, no one would do anything," Rocky said.

"I didn't let what happened with Jason cloud my relationship with Rocky. If I thought he'd act like Jason, I never would have given him a chance," she said.

"So I should go for it," Adam asked.

The couple smiled.

The three went downstairs where Adam took Tanya outside to ask her to a movie.

When Tanya returned all smiles, everyone knew they had fixed Rita's latest mess.

***Preview to next installment: Insanity. _Tommy was going to go crazy. He knew Kimberly was in Florida for a month, but he kept feeling like she was right there. One minute he thought she was right there, the next he didn't think she would be coming back. Tommy thought he would go insane from missing her. It was causing concern for Meredith and she was voicing her opinion.*** -mereditholiver._


	12. Insanity

INSANITY

Tommy was going to go crazy. He knew Kimberly was in Florida for a month, but he kept feeling like she was right there. One minute he thought she was right there, the next he didn't think she would be coming back. Tommy thought he would go insane from missing her. It was causing concern for Meredith and she was voicing her opinion. She told him he needed to focus or the team would have problems.

The cause for Meredith's concern had happened two weeks ago. Two weeks ago they had defeated Memory Maven and that night Kimberly found out she was going to have to go to Florida for a month for the training and tryouts for the team. Tommy had encouraged her to go, so Kimberly had left three days ago for Florida.

Watching her brother, she realized it was going to be a LONG four weeks.

"Tommy," she called to him from the deck. As he had been for the past fifteen minutes, he ignored her.

"THOMAS MICHAEL OLIVER," she yelled. THAT got his attention. He stopped his workout and turned in her direction. The scowl on his face was enough to cause most people to back off of Tommy. But not Meredith.

"Will you stop and come and eat dinner? I fixed your favorite. Mom called and she's on call, so she's sleeping at the hospital and dad's on call too. So it's just us for dinner. Thought afterward we could call the gang to come over for a movie," she said, pushing her brother toward the house.

"I don't want to eat," he said, glaring at his sister.

"Well, I didn't particularly want to cook, so since I did cook, you're going to have to eat," she said, glaring right back.

Tommy grabbed his towel from the patio chair and went into the house.

"I'll shower and meet you for dinner. But I'm NOT going to watch a movie with the gang," he said.

Meredith stood in front of her brother. "Really? Well, I'm not going to watch you brood for the next four weeks. Kimberly is going to come home and you're going to get to see her, so you need to handle things here," she said.

"I'll brood if I want, Meri," he said.

"Fine, you try that and see how far it gets you. You're my brother and I'll be damned if I'm going to let you hide out for the next month. Kim would kill you if you did that and she'd kill me for letting you," she said.

"You don't have to tell her," he said.

"True, but where, dear brother, is the fun in that," she said.

Tommy glared at her and walked upstairs. Meredith turned back to the kitchen and saw Rocky standing at the back door. She motioned for him to come in and he opened the door. He walked to his girlfriend and wrapped her in his arms, giving her a sizzling kiss.

"Sorry, wanted to get that out of the way since Tommy will probably keep me from kissing you while Kim's gone," he said.

Meredith kissed him again. "You're being a good sport about it," she said.

She turned back to the kitchen and Rocky helped Meredith get the dishes out of the cabinet. He set the table and poured water into the glasses.

Meredith sat the fajita fixings on the table. Just as she had taken the warm tortillas out of the oven, Tommy came downstairs.

"Rocky. You joining us for dinner," Tommy asked.

"Yeah. Mom took the younger ones away for the weekend to visit my grandmother, so it's either eat with you or eat pizza alone. I think Meri's cooking is much better," he said.

"Meri is a good cook," Tommy said.

"Yeah, you should take lessons," Meredith said.

Rocky looked at him, "Why," he asked.

"You don't know? Tommy can't cook and Kimberly is a disaster in the kitchen, so they'll be eating out a lot should they decide to get married," Meredith said.

"I could always come over to eat at your place," Tommy said, sitting down and making his fajitas. "I might object to that," Rocky said.

"Why? You know something I don't," Meredith asked him.

"I was just saying that you and I might get a bit crowded if Tommy and Kimberly are eating over at our place every night," Rocky said.

Meredith laughed at her boyfriend. Tommy laughed as well.

Meredith and Rocky started discussing school and such while Tommy slipped into a daydream.

"_Hey, Beautiful! I'm home," Tommy called as he entered the house. He set his gym bag on the washing machine before he entered the kitchen. _

"_Hey, Handsome! How was teaching today," she asked him._

"_Fun. Those kids are really eager to learn martial arts. Can't wait for you to start teaching your gymnastics," he said._

_Tommy was the owner of a successful dojo with Rocky, Adam and Jason. They all taught different classes at the dojo and were in the process of adding a gymnastics gym for Kimberly to start teaching._

"_About that, we might have to hire someone to do the actual demonstrations for the first few months," she said._

"_Why," Tommy asked. He walked into the kitchen and looked around. The stove was clean and the smoke alarm wasn't going off, so he figured Kimberly had either ordered dinner or found something she couldn't screw up. He found a casserole cooling on the counter._

"_Dinner, Kimberly," he asked._

"_Figured I'd better start learning to cook. Meri came by to show me," she said._

"_Smells nice and the kitchen isn't in ashes," he said._

"_Tommy, we're going to have to hire a coach to show the moves for the first six months the gym is open," she said._

"_Why," he asked._

"_Because I'm pregnant," she said._

_Upon hearing those words, Tommy grabbed her and gave her kiss. He couldn't believe he was going to be a dad._

"Hey, Tommy," he heard.

"Tommy, TOMMY," he heard again, bringing him back to the table he was sitting at with Meredith and Rocky.

"You were daydreaming. You're worse than Rocky when we're trying to study," Meredith said.

"Sorry, I was thinking about Kimberly. Man, I miss her," he said.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. We know that," Meredith said to Tommy.

"I guess it's going to be a LONG four weeks," Rocky said, eating his dinner.

Meredith shook her head. The next four weeks were going to be tough to get Tommy through.

A week into Kimberly's departure, Meredith was at the end of her rope. Tommy was driving her crazy. He had tagged along on every date she'd had with Rocky and, while Rocky was being a good sport about it, the lack of alone time was driving Meredith crazy.

She teleported to the command center to speak with Zordon.

"WHAT IS TROUBLING YOU, MY YOUNG SWAN."

"It's Tommy. You have to tell him it's ok for him to teleport to Florida to see Kim. He's driving everyone crazy and you know he was distracted during that last battle because he forgot it was Katherine and not Kimberly. Please, Zordon, for the sake of the team Tommy NEEDS to see Kimberly," she said to Zordon.

"I UNDERSTAND YOUR CONCERN AND IF YOU FEEL TOMMY NEEDS TO SEE KIMBERLY, I WILL ALLOW HIM TO TELEPORT TO SEE HER THIS WEEKEND. HE WILL BE ABLE TO COME BACK HERE IF WE SHOULD HAVE A BATTLE."

"Thank you, Zordon," Meredith said before teleporting back home. "Meri, where were you," Tommy asked.

"Making travel arrangements for you," she said, heading upstairs to his room.

"What are you talking about," he asked.

Meredith began putting clothes on this bed and grabbing a duffle from his closet.

"You are going on a little trip for a few days. We have a few days off from school and you're going to see Kimberly," she said, putting the clothes in his bag.

"I'm not flying down there. It's too much for such a short time," he said, trying to take the clothes out of the bag.

"Zordon said you could teleport. Make sure she's alone, so you go as soon as she's free. Or you can surprise her, it's up to you," she said.

She zipped up the bag and handed it to Tommy. "You want to shower before you go or what," she said, looking at his workout attire.

"Guess I should. Wouldn't want Kim to think I've turned into a slob while she's been away," he said.

"Turned into," Meredith asked, as Tommy headed into the bathroom.

She smiled at her brother and headed back downstairs. She wasn't surprised to find Rocky in her kitchen, raiding their fridge.

"Run out of food at your house," she asked him.

"No, just wanted to see you and heard you upstairs with Tommy. Thought I'd make myself comfortable since I didn't know how long you would be," he said.

"I was packing Tommy's clothes," she said.

"What did you two have a fight and have decided on a trial separation," Rocky said, grinning.

"Funny, honey. Tommy's going to visit Kimberly," she said.

"Is he going to use 'Ranger Travel Service.'"

"Yeah. Zordon gave permission for him to teleport to see her. He just has to come back if there's a problem," she said.

"Does that mean I'll get to be alone with you," Rocky asked, a twinkle in his eye.

"Easy Rocky," she said.

"If you say so," he said. He kissed her quickly before she could gather up a retort. Anything she wanted to say was forgotten by Rocky's kiss.

"Would you two stop doing that," Tommy said as he came downstairs. He was wearing blue jeans and green and white shirt. He had pulled his still damp hair back into his trademark ponytail.

"Just because you can't do this at the moment doesn't mean those of us that can, shouldn't. You're really cramping my dating life, Tommy," Meredith said.

"You'll let me know if you need me for a battle, right," Tommy asked, ignoring Meredith's comment.

"Yes. We'll call on the communicator. I think I can handle everything, you just go down there and see Kim," Meredith said.

Tommy hugged his sister, grabbed his bag and teleported to Florida.

A minute later, the phone rang at the Oliver's.

"Hello," she said.

"Meri, do you have anything to do with your brother standing in my dorm room," Kimberly asked,

"Possibly. Are you happy or mad," she asked,

"Very, very happy. I've missed him so much," Kimberly said.

"Then yes I am responsible and I wish I could say I did it for purely selfless reasons. Truth is, Tommy's driving us all crazy and he's become the third wheel in my relationship with Rocky. We haven't had a moment alone since you left," Meredith said.

"So you wanted alone time with Rocky. Well, I'll certainly help with that situation. Thanks for getting him here, Meri. It means a lot," Kimberly said.

"No problem. Just make sure he comes back happy. I know it's only a month, but this first week has been HELL," Meredith said.

She hung up the phone and turned around and ran right into Rocky's chest.

Rocky tipped her chin and kissed her. Meredith wrapped her arms around him and returned the kiss. It didn't take long for them to make up for the time they had missed being alone.

***Think Tommy and Kimberly are safe while in Florida. Think again. Zedd's up to his old tricks with Miss Fortune. Preview of Misfortune: _Tommy saw Kimberly fall. He had no idea that this fall was caused by Zedd's monster, Miss Fortune. He ran to Kimberly, hoping she was OK. He knelt down next to her, ignoring the broken beam. He kissed her cheek, "Beautiful, come back to me," he said. Kimberly was still.*** _-mereditholiver


	13. Misfortune

MISFORTUNE

Meredith watched Tommy teleport to visit Kimberly. She returned to Rocky and they made up for the time they had missed while Tommy was the third in their couple.

Kimberly was not expecting Tommy to show up. When he knocked on her dorm door, she was expecting a friend, not her boyfriend. She opened the door and gasped at the sight before her. She couldn't believe it. There stood the man she missed like crazy. Granted it had only been a week since she'd seen him, but that was too long in her opinion.

She jumped into his arms and he carried her like that into the dorm room. Kimberly took a second to contact Meredith and thank her for her surprise before turning back to Tommy and showing him how much she missed him. Luckily, Kimberly's short stay in the program allowed her a small room that didn't leave room for a roommate. Kimberly had her room all to herself, which was a necessity when Tommy began nibbling on her ear.

"Tommy, I do have to practice," she said.

"Well, we'll be quick about it and then spend the night doing it right," he whispered in her ear. Kimberly forgot everything as Tommy's hands found the small of her back. She didn't care if she was a few minutes late. She was usually early anyway, so she gave in to Tommy's seduction.

THE MOON

"Look at those two. It's disgusting how 'happy' they are, Zeddie. We have to do something. It's bad for morale to see those Power pukes so happy," Rita said.

"I know, my evil witch. I will create a monster that will destroy the very thing the white ranger holds dear: Kimberly," Lord Zedd said.

"You always attack Kimberly to get to Tommy. You should try another approach. Why not go after that perfect little sister of his," Rita suggested.

"Even better, my pet, I'll go after BOTH of them," he said.

The evil laughter of Lord Zedd and the cackling of Rita filled the moon palace and Zedd sent down a beam that created Miss Fortune. Miss Fortune's main purpose was not to engage the power rangers, but to bring harm to the two most important women in Tommy's life, his girlfriend and sister. Miss Fortune landed in Angel Grove first and set about looking for Meredith. Since Miss Fortune looked like a teenage girl, no one suspected she was a monster, not even the rangers.

Miss Fortune found Meredith walking out in the parking lot. Miss Fortune seized a car and started driving straight for Meredith. Everyone watched in horror as the car came straight for Meredith. Meredith, who had been going to meet Rocky and the rest was walking with Jason to meet their friends.

"MEREDITH," Rocky screamed, running as fast as he could toward looked in the direction Rocky's scream came from and saw the car hurdling toward her. Jason saw what was about to happen and tried to get Meredith out of the way. He nearly succeeded but the car still clipped her and she fell to the pavement. Jason looked at her in shock. He couldn't believe what had just , yelling Meredith's name, dropped to his knees by his girlfriend. He didn't know how much damage had been caused, but Adam came up behind him.

"Someone called 9-1-1. Ambulance should be here in just a minute. How is she," Adam asked.

"Meri? Babe, can you hear me," Rocky asked her. He didn't want to move her since he didn't know about her injuries. She groaned and mumbled something Rocky was sure had to do about the car.

"Meri, don't move. We don't know how bad you're injured," Rocky said. She reached up her arm and he immediately took her hand.

"Thank, Jason," she whispered.

Rocky looked up at the man that had once dated Meredith, "Thank you," he said.

"No problem. If you hadn't yelled, we wouldn't have been able to react to it," he said.

The ambulance arrived and began assessing Meredith. The paramedic looked at Rocky and asked if he wanted to ride with her. Rocky didn't need to be asked twice. He hopped in the back, holding Meredith's hand.

Jason stayed behind and told everyone what happened. He knew Tommy needed to be made aware of the situation, but he wanted to find out how bad the injuries were to Meredith. He got in his truck and drove himself and Katherine to the hospital. The others followed in other cars.

Rocky held Meredith's hand as they made their way to the hospital. Meredith had attempted to talk to Rocky, but he'd silenced her each time.

"Don't. You can tell me later," he said.

They pulled into the hospital's ambulance bay. Meredith was whisked to the emergency room; the action causing Rocky's hand to be wrenched from Meredith's grasp. He followed behind, but was waylaid by the admission people wanting as much information about Meredith as he could give. He stood outside the room, watching while trying to answer the questions he knew.

"What's her name, sir," he was asked.

"Meredith Summer Oliver."

"Birthday."

"October 21, 1977."

"Address."

"4462 Groverton Way."

"Do you have any information about her family."

"Her dad's a doctor here. He's an orthopedic surgeon. He's away at a conference. Her mom is an OR nurse. She went with him. His name is Dr. James Oliver and hers in Jane Oliver," Rocky said.

A nurse who was in the room with Meredith, brought Rocky closer to the room."Do you know if she has any allergies, Mister…" she asked.

"DeSantos. Rocky DeSantos, I'm her boyfriend. Yeah, she mentioned she was allergic to Penicillin. I think that's the only medical allergy she has," he said.

The nurse made a note of it in her chart and the doctor approached Rocky.

"I don't believe Meredith's suffered any severe injuries, but we'll get a CT scan to make sure. I'm going to call Jim's office and see if they can call the hotel where Jim and Jane are staying. You can sit with her if you'd like. They'll be taking her for x-ray shortly," the doctor said.

Rocky stood by the bed and grabbed Meredith's hand. She squeezed it.

"Hey, babe. You're scaring me," he said, trying to smile though he felt like breaking down and crying.

"I've got a hard head. You should know that after two years of dating," Meredith said.

The x-ray techs came into the room to wheel her to x-ray. Rocky kissed her forehead and watched them wheel her down the hall. The ER receptionist came up to him. "Sir, there is a large crowd gathering in the waiting room for word on Miss Oliver. Would you like to talk to them or do you want security to lead them away," she asked.

"I'll go out and talk to them," he said. He gave one last glance down the hall Meredith had gone down before heading to the lobby.

Jason jumped up when he saw Rocky come out to see them."How is she," he asked.

"They're taking x-rays but the doctor doesn't think it's too serious. They're trying to find Meri's parents. I should probably call Tommy," Rocky said.

"Sounds like a plan. We'll just wait right here," Adam said.

Rocky went to a quiet corner of the waiting room, the rest of the gang seated around him so no one would bother or notice what Rocky was doing.

"Tommy, you there," Rocky asked."Yeah, Rocky. Walking with Kimberly to the gym," he said.

"I just wanted you to know that Meri was injured this afternoon. She should be fine, but I thought you should know," he said.

"Is she OK," he asked, forgetting that Rocky had just told him she was fine.

"Yes, Tommy so you don't have to hurry home. I'll make sure that someone calls you if something changes with Meri," he said.

Tommy was silent for a few seconds. "Promise me that, Rocko," Tommy said.

"I promise, bro. I'll let you know the minute I know something," he said.

"OK. Tell Meri I love her," Tommy said.

"Sure thing," Rocky said. He went back to the group.

"What happened," Tanya asked. "Wish I knew," Rocky said.

"Think Zordon would know," Tanya asked. She had been told about the rangers because of her closeness with the group and with Adam. Zordon had said she was trustworthy and, therefore, their identities as the rangers could be revealed to her.

"I'll teleport to the command center and find out," Jason said.

Rocky nodded. He looked up and saw Meredith's nurse looking for him. He excused himself and went to the nurse."Thank goodness I found you. Miss Oliver is asking, well not asking, she's DEMANDING that you come back," she said.

"That sounds like my Meri," Rocky said, laughing. He followed the nurse to Meredith's room."No serious damage. Just a few big bruises and a hairline crack of my wrist. The doctor said it's probably from being pulled away and landing awkwardly. I'm going to go home," she said.

"That's wonderful! I felt so helpless when I saw the car coming at you," he said.

"Well, everything is fine now," she said.

"Yes it is," he answered back, kissing her hand.

Tommy and Kimberly walked to the gym. He knew that Meredith was probably fine. She had Jason and Rocky looking out for her.

"Tommy, I have news," Rocky said."Is she going to be OK," Tommy asked.

"Broken wrist and a lot of bruises. She's getting some medicine and we'll be heading back home," Rocky said.

Tommy breathed a sigh of relief. He was glad everything was fine with Meredith, especially since he was so far away. "Thanks, Rocky," Tommy said.

"So, Meri's OK," Kim asked,

"Yeah. Sore but she's going to be OK," he said.

Kimberly squeezed his hand as they entered the gym where Kimberly practiced. Tommy sat on the bleachers near the equipment. He knew Kimberly was going to do her beam routine first because she knew he loved her routines on that piece of equipment.

She did her preliminary stretches and then did her walk through on the beam. She chalked her hands and went into a handstand on the beam. She lowered herself with her feet on the beam. As she straightened, she bent her knees. She walked to the edge of the beam and prepared for her tumbling. She raised her arms in the air and was off. She had just landed her aerial, when Tommy saw the beam collapse. It collapsed at the joints on the opposite side from where Kimberly was, but she quickly lost her balance and landed on the floor. Her head bounced off the floor.

Tommy saw Kimberly fall. He had no idea that this fall was caused by Zedd's monster, Miss Fortune. He ran to Kimberly, hoping she was OK. He knelt down next to her, ignoring the broken beam. He kissed her cheek, "Beautiful, come back to me," he said. Kimberly was still. She didn't move and wondered if he was cursed. His sister had just been injured and now his girlfriend was unconscious.

Tommy looked around, but the gym was empty. As much as he hated leaving Kim, he took off toward the lobby and the nearest phone. He made a quick call to 9-1-1 and, after making sure they knew where Kimberly was, he hung up and ran back to her. Little did he know that Miss Fortune was hiding in the shadows, smiling at the tragedies that had befallen the white ranger.

"Kimberly, answer me," he said.

Kimberly started to stir and Tommy let out the breath he'd been holding.

"Kim! Thank goodness," Tommy said.

The paramedics entered the gym and quickly assessed her. They put her in a c-collar and transported her to the hospital.

Tommy rode along, determined not to let Kimberly out of his sight.

They took her into a room to assess her injuries. Little did Tommy know, but this exact same scene had been done hours ago with Meredith.

Tommy felt lost. He didn't know what he was supposed to do in this situation.

"Mr. Oliver," a nurse asked him.

"Yes. Is it Kimberly," he asked.

"She wants you in there," she said.

Tommy didn't need to be told twice. He entered the room and grabbed her hand.

"Tommy, what happened," she asked him.

"It looks like the beam broke, but I don't know how," he said.

"I don't either. I check the equipment before I get on it every time. I know I didn't miss something," she said.

Tommy thought for a minute. "Unless someone made it look good enough to pass your cursory inspection. It might not have been rigged to fall until you got to the difficult part. Did you notice anything different about your routine," Tommy asked her.

"Well, I didn't think of it at the time, but I wanted my dismount to be in front of you, so I started on the opposite side compared to what I usually do," she said.

"That's a good thing. It could have been a lot worse if you'd been at the other end. You might not be talking to me about it right now," he said.

Tommy gathered her into his arms and vowed to never let her go.

He had to let go, though. Kimberly was being taken to x-ray. Tommy hoped nothing serious had happened to her.

He paced in front of her room until he saw her coming down the hallway.

"I appear to be fine, but they saw something funny on my elbow, so they got an MRI while I was over there. Apparently I have some tendon and ligament damage in the elbow that will need surgery to fix," she said.

"Well, you can have the surgery and everything will be back to normal," he said.

"Maybe, maybe not. Even after I do physical therapy, I may not be able to do gymnastics. At least not competitively. They can't promise my elbow will be strong enough after the reconstruction to do what I need to," she said, tears filling her eyes.

"Well, Kim, if you need the surgery, you need the surgery. Maybe you're elbow will be able to keep up after the surgery. Even if you can't compete any longer, you have a full life back in Angel Grove. Might be nice to have my girlfriend back. Course, I'd have to cancel the stripper night I have every week. That I can deal with, but I think Jason might take offense," he said, earning a smile from Kim.

The doctor re-entered the room and Kim said she would have the surgery. They prepped her and Tommy went with her to the OR. He kissed her before she disappeared through the swinging doors of the OR.

He was escorted to the waiting room for the surgical suite and sat in the chair. He stepped into the private bathroom and locked the door. He contacted Jason.

"Jase, it's Tommy.""Yeah, bro. Your sister is fine," came the response.

"I know, Kimberly got hurt, too. She's having surgery on her elbow. She might not be able to perform her gymnastics any more. No one knows. This doesn't feel right. Someone had to have sabotaged that beam," Tommy said, anger rising in him.

"It's possible. I talked to Zordon. He said scans showed evil was powering the car that ran Meredith down. I'll get him to scan the area of the gym to see if the same thing happened to Kim," Jason said.

"Thanks, man. Rocky taking care of Meri," he asked.

"You know he is. He worships her," Jason said.

"I know. And Meri loves him deeply. Let me know what you find out," Tommy said.

He splashed water on his face and headed back into the waiting room. He spent an hour pacing back and forth before a nurse came in and told him Kim's mother was on the phone. Tommy went to the nurses station and answered the call."Tommy, what are you doing there," she asked him.

"School's out for a bit and my parents were heading out for a conference. They decided to let me tag along and see if I could see Kim. I was watching her when she fell," Tommy said.

"Thank God you were there. I can't possibly get there for three days. Can you stay with her until I arrive," she asked.

"Actually, I was going to find out if she could come back to Angel Grove for her recovery. Everyone is there and you won't have to make two flights," he said.

Kim's mom was visiting family in Paris and her new husband was conducting business. Kim's mom and step-dad split time between California and France. Kimberly stayed at the house, since all her friends were around. She probably suspected the Tommy spent a great deal of time there when she was gone, but she never said anything. Kimberly's happiness meant the world to her.

"If the doctor thinks she can make the trip so soon, then take her back to Angel Grove. I'll finish up here and take the next flight to California. It's not for three days, though," she said.

"I'll talk to the doctor and we'll call you when she's out of surgery," he said.

Kim's mom thanked Tommy, again, and Tommy hung up the phone. He saw Kim's doctor walking down the hallway toward him.

"Kimberly's mother spoke with my nurse and she said that you were family, so I can tell you about Kim's condition. The damage to the elbow was extensive. I don't know what this will mean for her gymnastics career, but, if I had to guess, I'd say it's not good. She's going to need physical therapy for it. She's not going to be able to use it for about 8-10 weeks and then therapy will probably be another 8," the doctor said to Tommy.

"Can I take her home to California? I figured she might feel better getting this therapy where she feels more comfortable and isn't living in a dorm," he asked.

"I think I can let her go home tomorrow, if you can assure me that she will have follow up," the doctor said.

"If you can tell me who to call, I'll set it up," Tommy said.

"If you're taking her home to Angel Grove, there's an excellent surgeon there that can follow her progress, Dr. James Oliver. He's the best, but I don't know if you'll be able to get an appointment with him ," he said.

Tommy started laughing. The doctor gave him a weird look.

"Sorry, sir, but Dr. Oliver is my father. I'm Tommy Oliver," he said.

The doctor smiled. "Well, then, I don't think it will be a problem for you to get Kimberly an appointment with him, will it," the doctor said.

Tommy shook his head. "I think I can handle that. When can I take her out of here," he asked.

"Well, she can go home tonight, if she wants and leave in the morning. Let me get her medicine filled. I have two pain killers here and an antibiotic. She might need it if you're putting her on a plane tomorrow," he said.

"I'll wait with her while you're getting her medicine," Tommy said.

The doctor shook hands with Tommy and directed him to Kim's was sitting up in the bed, but her eyes were closed. Tommy sat in a chair next to the bed and grabbed her hand.

"Hey, Tommy. Do I get to go home," she asked, still a bit groggy.

"Yeah in the morning. Do you want to go back to Angel Grove or do you want to go back to that cracker box of a dorm room," he asked.

"Could you get me home," she asked.

"Let me make a call," he said and he got up and went into the bathroom."Zordon, it's Tommy," he said.

"YES, TOMMY. HOW IS KIMBERLY?"

Tommy was caught off guard, but them remembered that Jason had probably told him what happened to Kimberly."She's out of surgery. Think we can teleport after they release her. We can go back to her dorm and then leave with her stuff from there," he said.

"THAT IS FINE. DO YOU THINK ANYONE WILL NOTICE HER ABSENCE."

"I don't think so. If we go late enough everyone will be asleep and everyone should think that she or someone else packed her stuff up. We can always have them ship it back and let them think she took what she needed," he said.

"SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD PLAN. TAKE HER BACK TO THE DORM, PACK HER WHAT SHE NEEDS AND THEN TELEPORT BACK TO HER HOUSE. MEREDITH IS BEING RELEASED IN THE NEXT HOUR AND ROCKY IS TAKING HER BACK TO YOUR HOME TO REST."

"No problem, Zordon. I'll see you later," Tommy said, closing the exited the bathroom and told Kimberly the plan. She agreed. The nurse entered the room five minutes later to pull Kim's IV and make sure she was awake enough to go with Tommy.

"Don't worry. He'll watch out for me," she said.

"Sounds like a good man you have there, Miss Hart. We've called a cab to take you back to the gym's dorms. The hospital covers it. It's part of the medical package with the gym. Here are your meds. Take this pain med every four hours for the pain and this one, is for the severe pain. Take it every six-eight. There's medicine in her for nausea. Take that one every four hours as needed and the antibiotic is to be taken twice a day to prevent infection. If you would sign for her, Mr. Oliver, we'll let you get this lady back to the dorm so you can get a flight for home," the nurse said.

Tommy signed the paperwork and the nurse pushed the wheelchair outside to the curb. Tommy was carrying everything else. Kim's clothes, the discharge papers and her gym bag.

Tommy helped her out of the cab when it pulled up to the dorms.

"We'll pack you a bag, get home and you can sleep," he said.

"You will stay with me, right," she asked,

"Of course," he said.

They entered her room on the second floor and Tommy pulled her pink suitcase from the closet. He put most of her clothes in the suitcase. He took the second suitcase and put the rest in it. He found a box to put the rest of her stuff in. He wrote a note asking for the remaining items, if they forgot anything, to be sent home to her.

Tommy held Kim's good hand and they teleported back to Kim's house in Angel Grove. Tommy took her bags upstairs. He returned to help her up the stairs to her room.

He helped her ease out of the ugly hospital gown, but it was the only thing that fit around her cast.

He pulled a green button up shirt from his overnight bag and helped her into it. The sleeves were missing from this shirt, so she didn't have a problem fitting it over her cast.

Tommy pulled the sheets back on her bed and help her into it. He propped her arm up on the pillows around her room and went to get her a drink so she could take her medicine. She took her pill and closed her eyes.

Tommy pulled off his pants and shirt and slid into bed on Kim's left side. He held her left hand as he felt her breathing ease as she gave into the pain medicine. He knew she was going to be hurting in the morning. He decided to catch some sleep until Kimberly needed him in the morning.

Rocky helped Meredith in to her bed. It had taken longer than he thought to get her home. She had taken a pain pill before heading to her room and Rocky had helped her into her t-shirt and sweat pants. "You raiding my closet again, babe," he asked as he helped her slip on his red t-shirt with a dragon on it.

"Maybe," she said. He knew she was fighting to stay awake and he helped her get under her covers.

"You're staying, right," she asked.

"Yeah. Just going to check in with my mom and call Tommy," he said. He kissed her forehead and went downstairs to make his calls.

He told his mom he was staying with Meredith now that she was home since no one was there to stay with her. While his mom wasn't happy they'd be alone, she figured if Meredith was injured there wasn't anything they could do. She told him to take care of Meredith and he told his mom he would and he loved her.

He then hit the communicator to call Tommy.

"Hey, bro," Tommy answered.

"You guys at Kim's," Rocky asked.

"Yeah. How's Meredith," Tommy asked.

"Sleeping. I'm getting her a drink so she has something when she needs her medicine. You coming home tomorrow," Rocky asked.

"Yeah, I'll bring Kimberly by if she wants to come. She's a bit restless at the moment, so I'm getting her some more medicine," he said.

"Jason said they are tracking whatever caused these 'accidents,'" Rocky said.

"Good. I would love to know who's trying to give me gray hairs. It can't be a coincidence that both Kim and Meri got hurt at almost the exact same time," Tommy said.

"My thoughts exactly. We'll talk about it tomorrow," Rocky said.

"See you tomorrow," Tommy said.

Both guys went about their duty of getting water and medicine for their girlfriends. As they watched their girlfriends sleeping, they were both acutely aware of how close they had come to nearly loosing them. Shaking the thoughts out of their heads, they rejoined their girlfriends in the beds, ready if they needed them.

***Will they find Miss Fortune or will she rear her pretty little head and cause more drama? The next installment is 'Smile.' _Tanya found Meredith sitting in the park. "Hey! Can I ask you a question," Tanya asked her purple clad friend. "Of course," Meredith answered. She turned herself to face her on the bench. "You've often said you know Rocky is your soul mate. Tommy and Kimberly talk about being soul mates. How did you figure that out? How did they? I mean, you dated Jason, from what I've been told, and they're so different," Tanya asked. Meredith smiled. "They are different." "So how did you know," Tanya asked. Meredith looked at her boyfriend, playing touch football with her brother and friends. The game play stopped for a minute and Rocky looked over at her and smiled. "That! Right there. That smile."*** _-mereditholiver


	14. Smile

DISCLAIMER: I forgot this last time, but I don't own anything but the character of Meredith. I own the writing of this particular story, but some things were borrowed from the actual show to make it all tie together. PR is owned by someone else. I got this idea from another site. Enjoy!

SMILE

Tanya found Meredith sitting in the park. "Hey! Can I ask you a question," Tanya asked her purple clad friend. "Of course," Meredith answered. She turned herself to face her on the bench. "You've often said you know Rocky is your soul mate. Tommy and Kimberly talk about being soul mates. How did you figure that out? How did they? I mean, you dated Jason, from what I've been told, and they're so different," Tanya asked. Meredith smiled. "They are different." "So how did you know," Tanya asked. Meredith looked at her boyfriend, playing touch football with her brother and friends. The game play stopped for a minute and Rocky looked over at her and smiled. "That! Right there. That smile."

Meredith related the first time she fell victim to the smile of Rocky DeSantos.

"_Jason, we've discussed this a hundred times. Discussing it a hundred more isn't going to change my mind," Meredith told her then-boyfriend, Jason Scott._

"_Meri. Come on. You won't even talk about it with me," he said._

"_Maybe that should clue you in that I'm not ready for that step. God, Jase, we've only been together a year," she said, turning her back to him while walking through the park._

_Jason grabbed her shoulder, stopped her and turned her back around. "I understand that, but you and I haven't been alone together since this whole thing with Tommy," Jason said._

_Meredith looked around before replying. "That THING with Tommy was horrible. For both of us. Tommy and I are trying to get past the awful things he said and did while he was the evil green ranger. You of all people know how much that affected me," she said._

"_I know, Meri, but why can't we go out right now. Why can't we be alone," he asked her._

_Meredith looked at her boyfriend. The guy that, just 12 months ago had helped her get used to her new school and had swept her off her feet. She looked into the brown eyes that, just a few weeks ago she would have been happy getting lost in and never finding her way out. Today, she didn't feel like being with him. Yes she cared for him, but she would have expected some understanding for him. Especially since he knew how much she treasured the relationship with Tommy. _

"_Look, Jase, we're going to the Angel's Festival this weekend. We'll spend the entire day together, OK," she said._

_Jason's look softened a bit. "OK. I'll see you tomorrow. I have a class to teach," he said._

_After a quick kiss, they took off in opposite directions._

_The next morning, still a bit bummed about the argument with Jason, Meredith got up, excited about spending the day with Jason. She knew she'd neglected him, but Tommy was very important to her and Meredith felt that if Jason cared about her at all, he would understand her desire to help her brother work things out._

_She had just showered and changed into her blue jeans and purple top when Tommy knocked on her door. "Yeah," she said._

"_Jason just called and said he's got something to take care of at the Youth Center and he'd meet you at the festival," he said._

"_OK. You and Kimberly going to go," Meredith asked her brother._

"_Yeah. Do you want to walk with me to her house," he asked."No. I'll head over to the park and wait for Jason," she said. _

"_OK. See you there," Tommy said, heading downstairs and out the door._

_Meredith went downstairs and grabbed her wallet off the table. She took the money out of it and stuffed it in her pocket. She went out the back door and started walking off the opposite way Tommy went._

_Two hours later, Meredith was sitting at a picnic table talking to Billy, totally bummed about Jason standing her up. She'd wanted to go home, but Billy had convinced her to hang out with him. They had walked around the festival and Meredith had found an awesome necklace she was sure Tommy would like._

_Billy saw some friends from the science club and excused himself from the table. Meredith decided to get a lemonade and walk back home._

_She was headed to the lemonade stand when she was waylaid by Skull. "Meri Oliver. Where's Jason? You two haven't been together much in the last few weeks. Trouble in paradise," Skull asked._

"_We've both been busy and I've got to get going," she said._

_Bulk and Skull blocked her path. "You weren't leaving without a Ferris wheel ride with me, where you," Bulk asked, slipping his arm around Meredith's shoulder._

"_Meri, I was looking for you! Come on, you promised me a ride on the Ferris wheel and I've already bought the tickets," Rocky said. He was standing to her left and took hold of her wrist. Meredith was able to get away from Bulk's arm and stand with Rocky. _

"_Thanks for waiting. Bulk and Skull detained me and I was afraid you'd go without me," she said._

_She and Rocky took off, his hand on the small of her back, leading her away._

_When the got in line for the Ferris wheel, Meredith let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Rocky. I was worried I was going to have to do a few karate moves on them," she said. She was going to slip out of the line when Rocky stopped her._

"_Now that I've saved you, don't you think the nice thing to do is accompany me on this thing? I mean, I know you're supposed to be waiting for Jason, but Tommy said he hasn't shown up yet and he said you really like riding these things," he said._

_Meredith, who had avoided looking at Rocky, looked up at him. He sent her a smile that turned her insides into mush. The jolt she felt at meeting his smile both alarmed and pleased her. She hadn't felt like that with Jason in a while. She smiled back. "OK, since you did 'save my life,'" she said._

_They rode the Ferris wheel and had a great time talking about school and their friends. At the end of the ride, Meredith, unhinged by the attraction she felt for Rocky, excused herself to go find Jason._

_She was approached about the party at Sue Davis' house. She didn't know if she would go, but when she saw Tommy she asked him about it._

"_Are you and Kimberly going to Sue's party," she asked._

"_Probably not. Kimberly's heading to Stone Canyon in the morning for a gymnastics competition and she asked me to go with her. I'll probably go to bed early and then head out with her in the morning," Tommy said._

"_I'm not sure I want to go and I still haven't talked to Jason," Meredith said._

_She went to her room to do some reading for English. She ended up falling asleep and missed Jason's call about going to the party. _

Meredith told Tanya that she and Jason had broken up a few weeks later. Meredith told Tanya what happened and told Tanya that Rocky's smile that day at the festival had hooked her.

Tanya looked at her friend. "A smile? That's it," she said.

"Yeah, but that might be over simplifying things. I mean, I love Rocky for more than that. He came to see me not long after Jason and I broke up and not once did he tell me I would feel better. He didn't tell me all the stuff you would expect to hear from your friends. Especially if that friend had feelings for you," she said. "He let me cry and bemoan the relationship, say some nasty things about Jason and the 'other woman.' He never agreed or disagreed. He just let me do what he thought I needed to do to get better. The day I realized I wanted to be with him, he had sat on the floor in front of me and looked up at me with those beautiful eyes of his and smiled. He said he'd be there when I was ready, for whatever. No pressure, no expectations. Just like that day he took me on the Ferris wheel. I don't know if he knew I was looking forward to that ride with Jason or what but he was such a great friend to me that day. Every time he kisses me, my insides turn to mush. I get butterflies before our dates and still anticipate that good-night kiss. I love him. I can't imagine not," she added.

"Do you think Adam and I are soul mates because I get butterflies every time he smiles at me. I get all giddy when he's talking to me when we're all together. I sometimes can't think when I'm around him," Tanya said.

"Probably. You're definitely in love with him and that's wonderful. You both deserve that. But don't take my word for it," Meredith said.

Tanya and Meredith watched the guys. She hoped that she'd provided a little insight into why she loved Rocky as much as she did.

"I can't speak for everyone, but I know that Kimberly fell for Tommy while trying to free him from evil. She was willing to sacrifice herself and her powers just to get him free from Rita. Zack changed his womanizing, player ways for Aisha and hasn't even given a hint that he's gone back to them. Jason treats Katherine like a princess. I just hope it lasts longer for her than it did for me," Meredith said.

"Do you ever regret that it didn't work out with Jason," Tanya asked.

"No. I wouldn't trade my time with Rocky for anything. He's the best. Jason and I were right for the time we were in, but we would have broken up anyway because our paths were so divergent. I was worried about Tommy and he was worried about taking the relationship to the next level. I couldn't be with someone I didn't trust," she said.

"I've only known Adam a short while, but I trust him with everything. And he trusted me with the secret that he's a power ranger. That's HUGE," she said.

"It is. It means he figures you're going to be around for a while. Jason had been dating Emily for several weeks and never told her. He told Katherine about everyone a month into their relationship," Meredith said.

"Rocky, why do you love, Meri," Adam asked his friend.

"Because she's Meredith. She's honest about herself and her feelings. She doesn't try to be someone she's not. She doesn't do things just to make everyone else happy or more comfortable. She sees the good in everything. She's still friends with Jason. Despite how mad and how hurt she was after their break-up, she eventually welcomed him back into her life. I can get lost for hours, just looking in her eyes. The look on her face after we kiss is something that gets me all giddy. It's a look of pure joy and happiness. Meri's just unlike any woman I've ever met. I can't imagine not having her in my life," Rocky said.

"Do you think Tanya and I are good for each other," Adam asked.

"I do. You have that look that Tommy gets when he's around Kimberly. I'm sure I have it when I'm around Meri. You and Tanya are good for each other," Rocky said.

Adam gave what his best friend had said some thought. He hoped he had a chance to be as happy as his closest friends. If Tanya agreed to go out with him, they might have the chance.

***I know this was fluff, but I thought we could all use some fluff once in a while. Next installment: Silence._ Miss Fortune found the Oliver twins studying in the park. Instead of causing physical harm to them, she used some of the magic dust Finster had created to make the Oliver twins unable to speak. _How will it affect the rangers and their ability to fight as a team when Zedd and Rita unleash the Terror Blaster, a monster that brings fear to the residents of Angel Grove by projecting scary images through the televisions that are unable to be switched off.*** -mereditholiver


	15. Silence

SILENCE

"So, do you want to go to the park and study for a while until Rocky and Kim can meet us," Meredith asked her brother.

"Yeah. We don't spend a lot time together anymore doing sibling stuff. I kind of miss it," Tommy said, following his sister out of school and across the parking lot to the park."I know. It seems like we're always busy or hanging out with Kim and Rocky. Then there's this unresolved business with Rita. I just wish we could find out what she did to cause those two accidents," Meredith said, taking out her History text.

Miss Fortune found the Oliver twins studying in the park. Instead of causing physical harm to them, she used some of the magic dust Finster had created to make the Oliver twins unable to speak.

She stood behind a tree and blew the dust, courtesy of Memory Maven and re-spelled by Finster, directly at the Oliver twins.

Both began coughing, but soon, their coughs were silenced.

Smiling, Miss Fortune disappeared and reported back to the Moon she had been successful.

"Excellent. Without voices, the white ranger won't be able to talk to his fellow rangers and the purple ranger won't be able to help out. Two rangers incapacitated and the power rangers will fall," Lord Zedd said, joining Rita in her laughter.

Meredith looked at Tommy and tried to talk to him. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Tommy tried to talk to her, but he had the same problem. Something had robbed them of their voices.

They couldn't contact Zordon, he wouldn't be able to understand them.

'_What in the world just happened to us,' _Meredith wondered to herself.

'_I don't know Meri, but it's definitely weird,'_ Tommy thought in response to Meredith's siblings looked at each other.

'_Do you know what I'm thinking right now,'_ she thought.

'_Not too sure since I'm a bit confused over what's happened,'_ he thought back.

Meredith heard Rocky and Kimberly coming across the park. She ripped a piece of paper out of her notebook and wrote 'TOMMY AND I LOST OUR VOICES. WE DON'T KNOW HOW OR WHY.'

Rocky looked at his girlfriend. "Are you in any pain," he asked her. Meredith shook her head in response. He put an arm around her shoulder and she leaned on him.

Kimberly looked at Tommy. "Should we go and see Zordon," she asked him.

Tommy nodded his head. Rocky contacted Alpha and said they were coming because there was a problem with the siblings.

The four of them teleported to the command center."Zordon, Meri and Tommy have had their voices stolen. Do you know anything about this," Rocky asked.

"LOOKS LIKE RITA IS TRYING TO CREATE HAVOC FOR OUR TEAM. SHE PROBABLY USED THE SAME FORCE THAT CAUSED THE ACCIDENTS YOU AND MEREDITH EXPERIENCED, KIMBERLY. RITA AND ZEDD THINK IF YOU CAN'T COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR LEADER, YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO FIGHT THE MONSTER THEY MIGHT SEND DOWN."

'_Making us unable to communicate with you because you're the leader makes sense. But why take away my voice,'_ Meredith thought.

'_I agree. But maybe they figure that you would take over if I was unable to communicate,'_ Tommy thought.

The twins started walking back and forth in front of Kimberly and Rocky. The two of them stared at Meredith and Tommy trying to figure out what was going on with them. Meredith stopped, looked at Tommy and threw her hands in the air.

'_But why,'_ Meredith thought, throwing her hands in the air to punctuate the point.

Tommy put his hands on his sisters shoulders and looked in her eyes. _'I don't know, but we will get through this. Rita and Zedd probably didn't count on us being able to communicate like this,' _Tommy thought.

'_Tommy, we didn't know we could do this,'_ Meredith thought.

Tommy nodded his head and shrugged his shoulders.

"Kim, I think they can talk to each other," Rocky said."You mean like telepathy," she asked.

"Well, they are twins and you know how some twins are connected," Rocky said.

Kimberly stared at Tommy. If Meredith and Tommy could communicate with each other, maybe they could get Billy to find a way to break them out of the spell.

"Maybe Billy can figure out how to break the spell," Kim said.

"Worth a shot," Rocky said.

"Billy, can you come to the command center," Kim called through the communicator.

Just like that, Billy appeared in a streak of blue.

"What's the trouble, Kimberly," Billy asked.

"That," she said, pointing to the Oliver's. "They were hit by some spell of Rita and Zedd's and now they can't talk," she said.

"But they can talk to each other," Rocky said.

Meredith and Tommy were listening to the conversation. She cocked an eyebrow a her brother, '_Do you think they think we can't hear them,' _she asked.

Tommy shrugged his shoulders.

Billy wrote something on a dry erase board and held it up for Meredith to see, blocking Tommy's view.

"MERI, TELL TOMMY TO SCRATCH HIS NOSE."

'_Tommy, they want you to scratch your nose,' _she thought.

Tommy sighed and scratched his nose.

"Well, it would appear your hypothesis is correct, Rocky. They do have some kind of telepathy," Billy said.

Just then, the sirens started going off in the command center.

"RANGERS RITA AND ZEDD HAVE SENT DOWN TERROR BLASTER. HE'S SEIZED CONTROL OF TELEVISION SETS AND HAS MADE THEM UNABLE TO BE CONTROLLED. IT'S PROJECTING FRIGHTENING IMAGES TO THE RESIDENTS OF ANGEL GROVE THROUGH THEIR TELEVISONS AND THEY CAN'T TURN THEM OFF."

"Rita and Zedd are probably thinking we can't beat this monster with Tommy a silent statue and Meredith having her voice clipped. We should get the other rangers here and explain. I have a feeling it's going to take EVERYONE to defeat this monster," Rocky said.

They had the other rangers teleport to the command center and gave them an update on what was going on with the Oliver's.

"I understand we're going to go and fight the monster, but how will Tommy and Meredith morph. They can't say anything," Jason asked.

"I'll morph them. I am only able to do it a few times because it depletes the generator. Doing two of you is going to be quite a power drain, but we need to defeat Terror Blaster," Alpha said.

"Have Kimberly's powers been restored to her," Adam asked.

Katherine had wanted to refocus on her dancing and had offered to give the power back to Kimberly when she returned to Angel Grove.

"DESPITE MY BELIEF THAT THE POWER COULDN'T BE GIVEN BACK TO HER IF SHE RELIQUISHED IT, SHE HAS BEEN ABLE TO RECLAIM THE POWER."

Jason took the lead and instructed the team. "It's Morphin' time," he said.

Tommy and Meredith held their morphers in front of them and Alpha morphed them into their ranger selves.

'_Tommy, can you still understand me,'_ Meredith asked.

'_I can still understand you. How are we going to do this,' _Tommy thought.

'_I guess you're going to have to let Jason and Rocky take the leads on this. Alpha is back at the command center trying to find a way to fix this,'_ Meredith thought.

"Meri, you stay with Rocky, Tommy you stay with Kim. We're going to take down this terror monster. Rocky and I can call your zords for you when the time comes," Jason said.

They were immediately met with Tengas. They broke off into pairs and started fighting the Tengas.

Tommy and Kimberly were fighting when Tommy thought a strategy. '_If we could do an up and over, it would shock these two and we would get them. I just wish I could tell Kimberly that,'_ he thought.

"Let's do it," Kimberly said. And the two performed the move.

'_Did you understand me,'_ Tommy thought.

"Yeah, I guess I did. We'll talk about it later," she said.

It didn't take long before the Terror Blaster became a 500 foot terror blaster.

The rangers were able to destroy the monster and the residents of Angel Grove had their televisions sets returned to their normal state.

When Terror Blaster exploded, Meredith and Tommy found their voices had returned.

The rangers met back at the command center for a debriefing.

"How was the spell broken? Was it linked to Terror Blaster," Meredith asked.

"It's possible. I believe the spell was broken when Tommy and Kimberly developed a telepathic link themselves. I don't think that was part of the plan," Billy said.

"Why did Tommy and Kimberly develop a link," Rocky asked.

"It is possible that the link exists when you are around your true love," Billy said.

Rocky had figured that was the reason and was a bit upset that he and Meredith had not developed the same connection.

Meredith knew Rocky was upset that they hadn't had it happen to them.

"RANGERS, YOU MUST BE ON GUARD BECAUSE RITA'S HENCHMAN IS STILL OUT THERE AND WE ARE STILL UNSURE WHO IT IS."

"We'll be careful, Zordon," Tommy said.

Everyone left the command center and went there own separate ways.

Meredith followed Rocky.

"Hey. You OK," Meredith asked.

"I'm just wondering why we couldn't communicate like Tommy and Kim could at the end," he said

Meredith sat down on the bench next to Rocky. She put her arms around him and kissed his cheek.

'_I love you, Rocky,' _she thought.

"I love you, too, babe," he said.

Meredith smiled. _'You realize I never said anything out loud,'_ she thought.

Rocky realized what she had said, or more precisely, thought.

'_I guess I was wrong,'_ he thought back.

"We needed some quiet time before we found our connection," she said.

"Yeah, I guess we did," Rocky said. He pulled Meredith closer and they watched the sunset.

***Another bit of fluff. Next installment, remember this is AU, Questioning. _The stood in disbelief as the command center was destroyed. Everything was gone. Meredith and Kimberly, with tears in their eyes were clinging to Tommy and Rocky. Aisha was leaning on Billy. Tommy's normally calm, controlled demeanor cracked. He held Kimberly and watched the rubble of the command center burn. Meredith couldn't look and buried her head in Rocky's chest. The realization that everything was gone, hit them all with the same deep loss._*** -mereditholiver


	16. Questioning

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but this little plot and Meredith. I stole the idea from another site and have been running with it for a while now. If you recognize something, it is, most likely, not mine.

QUESTIONING

The rangers were enjoying a fun day in the park. Since the destruction of Terror Blaster, Zedd and Rita had left the rangers alone for the moment. Tommy wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

'_Stop worrying. It's giving me a headache,' _Meredith thought.

Tommy smiled sheepishly.

"GRRRR! GET OUT OF MY HEAD, TOMMY," Meredith yelled at her brother.

They were still getting used to the telepathic link they had. Meredith was finding herself having to shut down to Tommy because it was getting a little annoying having him around all the time.

"Sorry, Meri. I'm trying," Tommy said.

Meredith nodded and looked at her boyfriend. She raised her eyebrows and he got the message.

"Well, catch you guys later," Rocky said to everyone.

"You really think something else is going to happen," Kimberly asked Tommy.

"I do because this is just too easy. They hit hard and then they pull back? Doesn't make sense," Tommy said.

"I concur. Usually their modus operandi was to attack us and try to exhaust us," Billy said.

"Any chance they decided they couldn't win," Jason said."I wish, man," Tommy said.

The group broke up with Tommy and Kimberly walking off together.

They were enjoying their walk when their communicators beeped.

All the rangers, in their various locations, teleported to the command center

"What is it, Zordon," Tommy asked.

"A MONSTER, FIN ALY, HAS APPEARED IN DOWNTOWN ANGEL GROVE. BE CAREFUL RANGERS, THIS MONSTER THROWS FINS THAT ARE ACTUALLY GERNADES."

"We can take it, Zordon," Tommy said. "It's Morphin' time."

The rangers morphed and teleported to downtown.

They faced off with the monster. The monster kept 'playing' with the rangers. It would disappear and then reappear, but the rangers figured out the Achilles' heel of the monster and defeated it with ease. Despite that, the monster was very time consuming.

Right after defeating the monster, they were thrown out of the megazord and de-morphed.

"Billy, what's going on," Aisha asked.

"Unsure. There must be a glitch in the morphing grid," he said.

"Some glitch," Rocky mumbled.

"Zordon? Alpha? Do you read me," Tommy said into his communicator.

"Something's wrong. We have to get to the command center," Kimberly said.

"Come on. Let's go," Adam said and the group set off for the command center on foot.

"ALPHA, WE MUST HEAD TO THE UNDERGROUND CHAMBER. I HAVE A FEELING THAT RITA AND ZEDD HAVE BEEN TOYING WITH THE RANGERS. WE MUST WORK ON THE NEW POWERS SOON. RITA AND ZEDD ARE BECOMING MORE POWERFUL TOGETHER. I ALSO FEAR THAT MONDO AND HIS MACHINE EMPIRE IS RETURING TO, ONCE AGAIN, TRY TO ENSLAVE EARTH."

"Aye, yi, yi, Zordon. We have to hurry," Alpha said. Zordon's time warp went dark as Alpha activated the secret door and entered. When the door shut behind him, the explosions happened.

The rangers arrived at the command center just in time to see the explosion.

They stood in disbelief as the command center

was destroyed. Everything was gone. Meredith and Kimberly, with tears in their eyes were clinging to Tommy and Rocky. Aisha was leaning on Billy. Tommy's normally calm, controlled demeanor cracked. He held Kimberly and watched the rubble of the command center burn. Meredith couldn't look and buried her head in Rocky's chest. The realization that everything was gone, hit them all with the same deep loss.

"Zordon. Alpha," Kimberly cried.

The rangers stood together in a tight circle, drawing strength from each other.

"What happened," Tommy asked, not expecting an answer.

The rangers sat down on the rocks on the cliffs overlooking the valley and the hill the command center once stood atop.

"Everything we've done, it's all gone now," Meredith said.

"The powers, the zords. Gone," Adam said.

"I can't believe this is happening. Everything we've done, everything we've fought for is gone. Rita and Zedd have finally won," Kimberly said as a new round of tears seized her.

"We sacrificed much of our high school lives to save the world and this," Jason said, the anger showing in his words.

"Hey, we can't give up," Tommy said.

"Save the 'we're still the power rangers' speech, Tommy. I've heard it entirely too much when something goes wrong and I'm really starting to wonder if being a ranger was worth it," Meredith said, raising her voice at her brother.

"Calm down, Meri. It's going to be OK," Rocky said, trying to soothe his girlfriend.

"Don't patronize me, Rocky DeSantos. Look! The command center is destroyed. We have no powers and Rita and Zedd are probably laughing on the moon at us. They've won. Tell me how this is a good thing. Tell me that everything I sacrificed, the fact that I gave up being a 'normal' teenager, was worth something. Rita nearly destroyed my relationship with Tommy by turning him evil. She caused all of us to relive painful memories. Zedd's got some creepy fixation on Kimberly. How has any of this been a good thing for us," Meredith asked, hot, angry tears falling down her face.

Rocky reached out to her, but she turned away. Tommy tried to comfort his sister, but she avoided him as well. Jason finally grabbed her by her shoulders and kept her from turning away. Jason expected to see sadness in her eyes, but he saw anger and resentment. "Meri, don't," he whispered to her.

Rocky came up behind her and wrapped her in his arms. She started crying and felt like she would never stop."Maybe Meri is right. Maybe this has all been for nothing. Without the powers, we can't defeat Rita and Zedd," Kimberly said.

Rocky rubbed Meredith's back and noticed something glowing in the distance. It didn't look like a fire, but he wasn't sure what it was.

"Hey, Jase, do you see that," he asked, pointing to the light in the rubble.

"Yeah. Hey, Tommy what do you think that is," Jason asked him, pointing to the spot Rocky had noticed.

"I don't know. Billy," Tommy asked the blue ranger.

"I can't think of any phenomenon that would cause that," he said.

Tommy and Jason approached the site of the glowing. They knelt down and slowly uncovered the object buried beneath the rocks. Tommy lifted the crystal out of the ground and, suddenly, the command center began rebuilding itself.

When Tommy touched the crystal a doorway opened just behind him."Look," Rocky called.

Everyone looked at the doorway behind Tommy. The crystal in his hands was changing colors. It glowed red, green, yellow, pink, gold, purple and blue.

"Think we should go through it," Kimberly asked.

"It could lead to the tunnels under the command center," Billy said.

"What tunnels," Meredith asked, her voice quiet from her crying.

"I must have neglected to mention I found the tunnels when I discovered Zordon and Alpha were creating the white ranger," Billy said.

"Let's see where it goes," Rocky said."Do you think that Zordon and Alpha survived? The command center is rebuilding itself," Aisha said."It's a good hypothesis. We should know if it is correct when we enter the doorway," Billy said.

Tommy, always the leader, went through first. Kimberly followed, clinging to the one hand that wasn't holding the crystal. Jason followed with Aisha holding his arm. Rocky went in after Jason. Meredith followed behind, gripping Rocky's hand with one hand and holding onto his arm with the other. Adam and Billy brought up the rear.

They walked through a maze of corridors, but the crystal acted like a beacon, directing them to their destination. When the arrived at a portal, they heard Alpha.

"Please step through the portal rangers," Alpha said.

Tommy looked at the group, who were all looking to him for guidance. He squeezed Kim's hand and put his hand through the portal before pulling it back. Deciding it was safe, he stepped through. Not hearing anything, Kimberly followed, with Jason, Billy and Adam behind her. Meredith stepped in and Rocky let go of her hand. He didn't want to admit he was a bit scared to step through, but he was. He was thinking of pros and cons when Meredith reached out with her hand and grabbed him by the ear and pulled him through.

"Hey! Let go of the ear," Rocky cried as he ended up on the other side.

Meredith smiled. The first smile since the whole thing started. _'Maybe the pain was worth it,'_ he thought. Meredith laughed.

"RANGERS, I AM SORRY YOU WERE DISTRESSED BY WHAT HAS HAPPENED HERE. ALPHA AND I WERE PREPARED FOR THIS TO HAPPEN. THE CRYSTAL YOU FOUND WILL GIVE YOU NEW POWERS. THESE POWERS ARE FROM THE ZEO CRYSTAL. YOU WILL HAVE NEW ZORDS AND NEW POWERS THANKS TO THIS CRYSTAL."

"Wow, that is very, very cool," Kimberly said.

"We're getting new powers," Meredith asked.

"Yes, rangers. You will be getting all new Zords and new powers," Alpha said."So we're supposed to take these powers up again," she asked

"MEREDITH, I UNDERSTAND YOUR APPREHENSION AT TAKING THESE NEW POWERS. YOU WERE THE SAME WAY THE FIRST TIME THE POWERS WERE OFFERED TO YOU. I CANNOT FORCE YOU TO TAKE THE POWERS, HOWEVER YOU ARE A VITAL PART OF THE RANGER TEAM."

"I understand that, but I don't know if I can handle something like this happening again. Maybe we haven't defeated Rita and Zedd because we are the right rangers for the job. At least I don't think I am," she said."Meri, you were picked to be an original ranger. You, me, Zack, Kimberly, Trini and Billy were the first rangers. You did so much as part of that team, that you have to be a part of the new one," Jason said.

"Meri, please, I need you to be at my side in this," Rocky said._'You and I can do this together,'_ Tommy thought.

Meredith smiled. "OK, I'll do it," she said. "Rangers, please prepare to receive your new powers," Alpha said.

The rangers lined up. Light shined down on all the rangers, but Billy.

"BILLY, I AM SORRY. THERE ISN'T ENOUGH OF THE ZEO POWER TO INCLUDE YOU IN THE NEW TEAM. YOUR NINJETTI SPIRIT ISN'T COMPATABLE WITH THE ZEO POWERS."

The other rangers were bummed. Billy had been part of the team since the beginning.

"Do not worry, rangers. We have a mission for Billy," Alpha said.

Each ranger received their new powers, and in the guys cases, new colors.

Tommy was the new red ranger, Adam the new green ranger and Rocky was the new blue ranger. Jason stayed the gold ranger.

When they were morphed into their new suits, None of them could believe it.

"Awesome," Tommy said.

The others nodded in agreement.

"GO BACK TO YOUR NORMAL ACTIVITIES. BILLY, YOU WILL STAY HERE AND HEAR ABOUT YOUR MISSION."

The rest of the rangers teleported out of the command center.

"I can't believe you're a red ranger. You can't be a red," Jason said.

Tommy smiled.

"That's right, he doesn't have the attitude to be a red," Meredith said.

"What's the matter, Rocky," Tommy asked.

"I don't think I should be blue. I don't have any of the blue qualities that Billy has," he said.

Meredith wrapped her arms around his waist. "I don't care what color you are just as long as you remember me," Meredith said.

Rocky kissed her and they all took off for their homes.

As Meredith was going to be that night, she couldn't stop thinking about how much they had all sacrificed in the name of fighting evil. She turned off the light and hoped that these new powers would rid the world, finally, of Zedd and Rita.

***Next installment, Blood. _No one would ever argue about who Tommy called his best friend. Sure he talked to Jason about things and he told Kimberly nearly everything, but his twin sister was the one that knew him the best, knew what he was thinking. _The Oliver twins explain their relationship when writing a paper for English class.*** -mereditholiver


	17. Blood

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but this story and the character of Meredith. I borrowed this idea from another site, but the writing is original. I've borrowed some things from the show, but I have twisted it because this is my AU. Someone else with much deeper pockets owns PR, so I own nothing.

BLOOD

A week later, the gang was sitting at their favorite table in the juice bar discussing their latest English assignment. English was the only class the entire group had together, so they tried to work on those projects as one big group.

"We're supposed to talk about our best friend," Meredith said.

"Well, that should be an easy one for you, Meri," Rocky said, smiling at his girlfriend.

"You would think that, wouldn't you," she said.

"I'm not your best friend," Rocky asked, a slight pain in his voice.

"It's tough to say Rocky. I mean, you are like a best friend, but we share so much more. Kimberly is my best girlfriend because I can tell her anything. I'm going to have to go home and think about this one. I'll see you later, Rocky," she said, kissing him and heading toward the park.

She stopped at the nearest picnic table and sat down, looking over the lake. She knew Rocky thought he was her best friend. She knew Rocky's best friend was Adam, but Rocky probably told Meredith more than he told Adam these days. She told Kimberly a lot of things, but she didn't really tell her all the things she usually told Rocky or Tommy. If Meredith thought about it, Rocky and Tommy were her best friends, but Tommy was probably it.

She and Tommy were siblings. They had been through, literally, fire and hadn't broken in their commitment to each other. Tommy had been evil, yet Meredith never wavered in her support for him when the spell was broken. Sure she was seriously hurt by what had happened, but she also knew that Tommy was kicking himself for the things he had said.

"Hey, Meredith. Everything OK," Katherine asked. Meredith hadn't even heard the pretty blond until her soft voice and Australian accent caught her attention.

"That project for English. I'm having a bit of a tough time figuring out my best friend," she told her friend.

"It's fairly obvious that Tommy's your best friend," Katherine said, sitting down next to her.

"How do you figure," Meredith asked.

"Describe what Tommy means to you," Katherine said.

"He's my brother. My twin brother. He and I were adopted when we were hours old. We found out from our parents that we were adopted when we were ten," Meredith said.

"And how did that make you feel," Kat asked.

"I freaked out. I thought that our real parents were going to come and take us away. I was so scared I refused to leave the house or anything because I thought my parents would be gone when I got back. Tommy, who never let anything get to him, even at that age, promised me that we'd be together. No matter what happened, we'd be in the same place. He was so sure that nothing was going to happen to us," Meredith said.

"He's your protector," Katherine asked.

"I guess, but Rocky's has that role now. But I still run to Tommy for reassurance," Meredith said.

"See. It's not so difficult to figure out," Katherine said.

"I guess you're right, but I'm afraid Rocky might have his feelings hurt," Meredith said.

"I don't think so. Jason may be my boyfriend, but he knows that Tanya is the person I tell everything to. Especially the stuff about him that I try to figure out," Katherine said.

"Oh, I see. You still have to talk about him without him really knowing," Meredith said."Exactly. I can't wait to hear your essay," Katherine said, rising and heading toward the juice bar. She waved at Meredith before disappearing down the hill.

Meredith felt better after talking with Katherine and headed home to write her essay.

She sat at her desk and started writing.

'My Best Friend, by Meredith Oliver.

I am fortunate in my life. I have several people that I consider close friends. They might even be considered best friends. I have Kimberly, who I can gossip with and talk about girl stuff, which usually involves our boyfriends. We can hang out and go shopping and do 'girl' stuff. I have Rocky, who I love dearly. I can tell him everything and know he won't judge me. He comes running whenever I need him and I trust him. But I don't think Kimberly or Rocky can be called my true 'best' friend, despite what they might think.

My best friend is my brother, Tommy. We're siblings. Actually we're twins, which makes us closer than most siblings. We can anticipate what the other wants without saying a word. We know each other's moods. We know what each other needs when we're down. No matter what has happened in out lives. When we moved to new towns or found out we were adopted, our relationship, the fact that we're siblings didn't change. Tommy will always be there, no matter what happens in my life. I guess that's what makes him my best friend. I know he'll always be there. I feel that Kim and Rocky will, too, but I KNOW Tommy is always going to be around.'

No one would ever argue about who Tommy called his best friend. Sure he talked to Jason about things and he told Kimberly nearly everything, but his twin sister was the one that knew him the best, knew what he was thinking_._

He didn't understand why Meredith was having such a touch time figuring out her best friend. For once, the answer seemed really obvious to him.

He walked Kimberly home so she could get started on her essay. He returned to his house and found his sister was writing away at her desk.

Not wanting to disturb her, he went to his room and put his books on his desk.

He took his notebook out and sat down, preparing to write his essay.

'My Best Friend, by Tommy Oliver.

Despite what everyone might think, this essay is an easy one for me to write. My best friend is my twin sister. She's the only person in my life that has been there for me through everything. We were meant to be best friends. We shared a bond before we were born. She knows everything about me. (Which isn't always a good thing.) We know each other. We can just share a look and know what the other is thinking. I don't think I would know how to live my life everyday if I didn't know Meredith would be right there. I think I could live if Kimberly wasn't in my life and I could deal if I'd never met Jason, but I don't like to think that way. I do KNOW that I couldn't handle it if I didn't have my sister.'

Tommy reread his essay and was satisfied with it. He wasn't going to show it to Meredith because he wanted her to be surprised when he read it in class.

He sat back and wondered how the others were fairing with their essay writing.

Meredith sat back in her seat, happy that her essay was done. She slipped it into her folder, ready to be read in class next week. She hoped it sounded as good as she thought it did.

She was about to walk into Tommy's room when the phone rang. She picked up her extension.

"Hello," she said.

"Hey, babe," Rocky answered.

"Hey! Did you get your essay finished," Meredith asked.

"I did and I know you're essay is about your brother," Rocky said.

"Yeah. I talked with Kat and decided that he was my best friend. Not that you aren't either, but… oh you know what I mean," she said.

Rocky laughed. "Yeah, I do. But, none of my siblings are as close to me as you and Tommy are to each other. I have to say, you are my best friend. I know I've known Adam since kindergarten, but you're the one that knows everything. I can't lie and say it's anyone but you," Rocky said.

"That's sweet. And, by the way, I knew that," Meredith said, laughter in her voice.

"How about a movie," Rocky suggested."Sounds good. We going out or meeting here or there," she said.

"I can walk to your place, if you want. Everett's birthday party is tonight and mom said for me to get out of the house if I wanted any quiet alone time with you. She said the others would help, plus my grandmother will be here," he said.

"Sounds good. I'll order pizza and wait for you," she said.

"OK. See you in a few. Love you," he said.

"Love you, too," she replied before hanging up.

She exited her room and went down to the kitchen. She found Tommy standing in front of the fridge."I'm ordering pizza. Rocky's coming over for a movie. You and Kim want to join us," Meredith asked her brother.

"She's on her way over, so I guess we will join you," Tommy said, shutting the fridge after grabbing a bottle of water.

Meredith ordered pizza and she and Tommy went to the family room to wait for Kim and Rocky.

Rocky changed his clothes and headed out the door. He kissed his mom goodbye and wished his brother a happy birthday. He loved his family, but was glad his mom told him he could beg off this gathering.

He started walking to the Oliver house and thought about his essay. He knew Meredith was his best friend, but it felt really weird to write about his wonderful relationship with her. They were both such quiet, private people. HE thought about what he'd written.'My Best Friend, by Rocky DeSantos.

My best friend could be Adam, the guy I've known since kindergarten. It could be Tommy, a guy I've gotten to know from his sister. I could say it was either of those guys, but I would be wrong. My best friend isn't a guy, it's a girl. It's my girlfriend, Meredith Oliver.

Meredith and I have been a couple for more than two years. We've shared so many memories and so many secrets that it's impossible for me to know if there is anything she DOESN'T know about me. I know everything about her. It seems weird, at this young age, to have this kind of relationship, but we do. Meredith is my best friend. There isn't anything that I do, that I don't talk with her about. I love her and trust her. That's how I know she's my best friend.'

He hoped he did well on his assignment because he was honest in what he wrote.

He walked to the side door and entered the kitchen. Rocky was at Meredith's just as much as she was at his, so he came in the side door and headed downstairs. He wasn't surprised to find Tommy and Kimberly already stretched out on a sofa. Meredith heard him come inside and was waiting for him. He sat down next to his girlfriend and gave her a quick kiss before asking what movie they were watching.

"Don't know. Kimberly's still trying to convince Tommy that her saying he was her best friend is true," Meredith said.

"Meri is Kimberly's best friend," Tommy said.

"No I'm not. We are friends and I tell her a lot and she tells me a lot, but I don't think I'm her best friend. You know her better than anyone. The only thing I bring to the table is the ability to read you. And another female perspective," Meredith said.

"You're my best friend Tommy because you always listen. You're always there. You have the ability to keep me in check when no one else wants to try. You're not afraid to tell me the truth. You're the one that I turn to when things get really crazy and I need some help. You provide an ear, a hug, a sympathetic look. I love you and trust you with everything, including my life," Kim said.

"That's exactly what I said about Meri. I love her and trust her with everything I have, including my life. She already has my heart," Rocky said. Meredith smiled at Rocky. "You're laying it on pretty think there DeSantos," she said.

After a few more minutes of discussion, they all agreed they'd made the right choices regarding their best friends. Tommy and Meredith had a bond that not even the love of Kimberly and Rocky could sever. They were connected in a way only two people who had been bonded from birth could be. Kimberly and Rocky felt honored to be with them and experience the great relationship the twins had with each other.

***I know this was kind of thrown in there, but I needed everyone to understand Tommy and Meredith because later it becomes just as important as the Tommy/Kimberly connection. (Anyone who has read my song shuffles might recognize bits of that in here. I thought it was a good piece of writing.) Next installment: Dreams. _The rangers were preparing for their lives after their tenures as rangers ended. They still had six months before they would be asked to give up their powers for an attempt at a normal life. They were all planning on college or setting off for their dreams. Meredith and Tommy were sorting through the stack of college applications on their dining room table, suddenly overwhelmed with the prospect before them. _Will certain dreams clash with another's? Will certain dreams cause someone else's to be derailed?*** -mereditholiver


	18. Dreams

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing associated with PR. That belongs to someone else. I own the character of Meredith and this piece of writing. I borrowed this from another site as a challenge and twisted it to make it my own.

DREAMS

The rangers were preparing for their lives after their tenures as rangers ended. They still had six months before they would be asked to give up their powers for an attempt at a normal life. They were all planning on college or setting off for their dreams. Meredith and Tommy were sorting through the stack of college applications on their dining room table, suddenly overwhelmed with the prospect before them. Meredith and Rocky passed the table on their way downstairs.

"So, have you decided which colleges you're going to apply to, Meri," Rocky asked her as they cuddled on her family room couch reading their History assignments.

"Yeah. I've got a few I'm going to apply to, but I don't know if I've got the right stuff for my first choice," she said.

"I've been thinking and I think I want to try to open that dojo I've always dreamed about," Rocky said.

"Are you going to go to college," she asked.

"Yeah, but I want to try this dojo thing. I'm only going to delay it for a year, OK," he said.

Meredith put her history book down and looked up at Rocky. The excitement on his face at the prospect of having his own dojo was enough to excite Meredith.

"Do you still want to go to med school," Rocky asked, his voice taking on a somber tone.

"Yeah. It's the only thing I can see myself doing," Meredith replied.

Rocky nodded his head and went back to his reading. Meredith could tell he had something on his mind. She took the book from his hands.

"What," he asked, a bit annoyed at her.

"What's the matter, Rock? You're whole mood has suddenly changed," she said, staring into his eyes.

"Nothing. It's just a lot to take on right now," he said.

"That's not it. Don't lie to me. I know you, Rocky," Meredith said.

Rocky got off the couch and started walking around the family room. Meredith jumped up to join him, not sure exactly what was wrong with him.

"You want to be a doctor and I want to run a karate dojo. Do you really think those two things go together," he asked, looking at her.

"That's what you're worried about? Why," she asked.

"Well, you're going to be the educated one in our family and everyone is going to wonder why your with that stupid jock," he said.

Meredith scoffed at his statement.

"That's stupid. If anyone has a problem with my guy owning a dojo and being damn good at it, then I don't want them in my life. Rocky, none of that matters as long as we love each other," she said.

"But, if we get married, you're going to have stuff that I won't understand," he said, wrapping his arms around her."And I won't understand a thing about business. I don't have a head for it, but you do. I don't care what you want to do with your life, as long as you want me in it. Personally, I'd like you to stay home with the kids," she said, wrapping her arms around his neck.

He pressed his forehead to hers. "Oh, I want you in my life so badly, it's the only thing I KNOW that I want," he said. Meredith smiled and kissed him.

"If you want to open a dojo, I'll support you. Just like you'll support me when I go to medical school. THAT'S going to be tough. I mean you're looking at a twelve year commitment there," she said.

"Hey, as long as you and I are together, I can handle that," he said.

"I don't want you to EVER think that you're dreams aren't good enough for me. I don't care what it is as long as you're happy. You could go and become a physical therapist or become a doctor, too, but you wouldn't have the passion I see on your face when you talk about the dojo. That's the only thing I care about. If you're happy with what you're doing, then I'm happy and we will have nothing to worry about," Meredith said.

Rocky smiled at his girlfriend, knowing that she was happy with his plans, just as he was happy for her with her plans.

"Are you going to apply to schools here in Cali," he asked.

"Where's the dojo opening up," she asked him.

"Stone Canyon. Mom and dad found a great location for it and it has a small finished apartment upstairs. I got a good deal on the loan for the building and got the whole thing. I figured I can put a better apartment in the loft space on the fourth floor and figure out what to do with the rest of the space after that apartment and the dojo are finished," he said.

"Well, UCLA and USC are within driving distance of Stone Canyon, so I thought I'd apply to those and see what happens. I'll apply to Stanford just because dad went there," she said.

"You're going to try to go to school near me," he asked, surprised.

"Well, I thought that we could get an apartment, but if you're dojo has space, we don't have to do that," she said.

"That's a big step there, Miss Oliver," Rocky said, looking into her eyes.

"It is Mr. DeSantos, but I think we can handle it. Besides we have six months to figure all this out," she said.

Rocky kissed her and pulled her into his arms. "You have that right, babe," he said before kissing her and they fell to the couch. Rocky hitting it first.

Tommy and Kimberly were arguing. They were arguing about their college plans. Kimberly wanted to go to school and become a nurse. Tommy wanted to delay for a year. He thought about taking his uncle up on the offer for him to drive a racecar. Kimberly didn't like the idea and was expressing her displeasure at his suggestion by not talking to him.

"Kim, I'm going to go to college. I just want to try this as something different before I go back to school," he said.

Kimberly stared at him. She loved Tommy, but she was seriously hoping that he would decide to settle down; not do anything dangerous.

She sat down on the sofa and looked up at Tommy.

"I know that and if you don't want to go that's fine, but I would have thought you would do something not so dangerous. I mean, we've spent most of our teen years doing something really dangerous. I'm ready for something boring and normal," she said.

"I know, but knowing that I'm not going to be a ranger in a few months, scares me. I don't know how to NOT be a ranger any more. I'm scared and this racing thing will give me the rush I'm going to crave," he said.

Kimberly pulled her boyfriend down on the couch. She straddled him and kissed him deeply. "I'll give you a rush, Tommy," she whispered in his ear.

Tommy moaned with delight and gave into Kimberly's teasing without much of a fight.

Aisha looked over the college brochure in her hand. It was to one of the top veterinary schools in the country. She hadn't talked with Zack about his plans, but she felt she knew what they would be and Aisha was going to support him, no matter what.

She took out her pen and started filling out the application to the school. She was applying to UC Davis in the hopes of getting into their School of Veterinary Medicine after her undergraduate work. She couldn't imagine going any where else.

Zack came in just as she was finishing up. She was placing all her necessary information into the required envelope and addressing it.

"Hey! You sending that one out," he asked.

"Yes. I've officially applied to UC Davis," she said.

Zack smiled. The look on Aisha's face was priceless and he was very happy for her.

"Well, I won't be too far from you then. I got an internship after graduation with a company that produces music. I'm hoping to get some vital experience so I can open my own label. But I had to promise mom and dad I'd go to school, so I'll apply to UC Davis and see what happens. I'm also going to apply to Stanford and see about their music school," Zack said.

"That's a great idea. We can go to school together," Aisha said."That's the plan. I want to be with you as you follow your vet dreams," he said.

Aisha smiled at her boyfriend, touched that he'd be willing to follow her while she explored her dreams.

Adam decided he wanted to be a doctor. He'd thought about it but after Trini's accident, he made a decision. He was going to be a doctor and was going to try to be a trauma surgeon. He wanted to save people.

He was flipping through brochures on medical schools and stopped at ones Meredith had given him. He knew she was going to go to medical school and wanted to attend either UCLA or USC. Her father was a graduate of Stanford, but that was six hours away from where he knew Rocky was starting a dojo.

He read the requirements for them and decided to apply to all three and see what happened. He figured he could get into one of them.

Tanya knocked on his bedroom door and sat down on his bed.

"Deciding where to apply," she asked him.

"Yeah. I figured I'd try at the same schools Meri is applying. Hopefully I will know someone in my classes," he said. He looked at his girlfriend. "Did you hear about your audition," he asked.

"Yes. I have the final audition next Tuesday, but they pretty much told me it's a formality. You are looking at a future graduate of Julliard's vocal program," she said, her smile widening at the statement.

"I can apply to schools in New York," he said.

"Adam, we talked about this. I'll be traveling with the chorus and what not," she said."I know, but I don't want us to lose what we have," he said, taking her hands.

"We won't. I'll be back in California a lot for shows and auditions. I'm not going to lose you over college, Adam. I love you," she said."I guess you're right. We don't have to break up and we'll see each other at breaks and such. We'll be fine," he said, trying to sound more sure of himself than he really was. "I love you, too," he said. They shared a tender kiss before Tanya started helping Adam get stuff together for his application process.

Jason was confused. He didn't have any idea where he wanted to go to college, much less what he wanted to major. He was also feeling a bit lost with his girlfriend. Katherine was going to attend college in London, where her father was teaching and study at the Royal Ballet Company. It was a wonderful and prestigious opportunity for Kat and the last thing Jason wanted to do was tell her not to do it. He was going to miss her, but she had told him they would visit and she'd travel to the states for shows during her time with the ballet. They could decide the future when they were finished with school. Katherine had assured Jason that he was the one she wanted to be with and would not entertain any notion by him of breaking up. Jason smiled at that thought.

He flipped through the pamphlets his parents had gotten for him. His eyes rested on the physical therapy program. Both USC and Cal State had programs and it looked like something he could enjoy. Helping people regain their mobility and independence sounded just like something he could do. 'Kind of like being a ranger,' he thought to himself.

He made notes on what he was going to need to apply. He filled out the application and sat down to write his essay. He put the finished product in his backpack, just as Katherine showed up at his house."Hey, sweetie," she said, kissing him as he opened the door.

"Hey, yourself," he said.

She followed him into the kitchen and saw the paperwork spread out on the counter.

"You found something to major in and where you want to go," she asked.

"Yeah. I'm thinking Physical Therapy. USC and Cal Sate have some really good programs, so I figured I'd try there. I know Meri is thinking of applying to USC, so maybe we'll be on campus together," he said."I'm glad you figured something out. I was getting worried about my going off to England and leaving you at loose ends. You'd do great in PT," she said.

Jason pulled Katherine in for a kiss and they soon forgot about Jason's applications for the afternoon.

Billy read the letter again. He couldn't believe it. Well, actually, he could believe it he just didn't think it would happen. He had been offered a full ride to MIT. He was going to realize his dream of becoming a rocket scientist. He smiled as he refolded the letter. He knew Trini would be happy.

Tommy still wasn't sure, but he was going to apply to the same schools as his sister and Kimberly. He hoped somewhere along the way, he'd find something he loved to do, more than being a ranger.

Several months later, the rangers and their friends had their answers to their colleges.

Meredith had been accepted at USC, UCLA and Stanford.

Adam had been accepted at UCLA and Stanford.

Aisha and Zack got UC Davis.

Jason got in at USC and Cal State.

Kimberly was going to UCLA.

Tommy got accepted at UCLA and USC.

Rocky had applied and been accepted at UCLA and USC, but he wasn't sure he was going to go.

Billy took his scholarship and was going to MIT. Tanya made it into Julliard.

However, their joy at making it into their colleges was marred by the fact that the Little Angels Haven needed help or it would close down. No one wanted to see that happen, so the guys decided to enter the competition to win the prize money for the home.

***That was more fluff. It might come in handy later, who knows. Next installment: _Tommy, Adam and Rocky had been practicing non-stop it seemed for the competition. "Give it a rest, Rocky. You're going to hurt yourself if you keep trying so hard," Adam said. "Yeah man. We're all tired, so let's call it a day," Tommy said. "You guys go ahead. I don't think we're trying hard enough," Rocky said before trying to execute a spin kick. He lost his footing and went through the ropes to the concrete floor. He landed with a heavy on his back. Meredith, who'd come to watch the practice, saw the accident and went screaming to Rocky. "Babe, I'm so stupid," he said. "Hush. Just stay still. The ambulance is on it's way," she said, trying not to cry. Tommy placed a hand on his sisters shoulder as they waited for the ambulance to load Rocky.*** -mereditholiver_


	19. Accident

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but this writing and the character of Meredith and a Jeep Cherokee. I borrowed the idea for this from another site and PR belongs to someone else. Anything that sounds familiar is not mine and I am not making any money off this, but I am having TONS of fun.

ACCIDENT

Tommy, Adam and Rocky had been practicing non-stop it seemed for the competition. "Give it a rest, Rocky. You're going to hurt yourself if you keep trying so hard," Adam said. "Yeah man. We're all tired, so let's call it a day," Tommy said. "You guys go ahead. I don't think we're trying hard enough," Rocky said before trying to execute a spin kick. He lost his footing and went through the ropes to the concrete floor. He landed with a heavy thud on his back. Meredith, who'd come to watch the practice, saw the accident and went screaming to Rocky. "Babe, I'm so stupid," he said. "Hush. Just stay still. The ambulance is on it's way," she said, trying not to cry. Tommy placed a hand on his sisters shoulder as they waited for the ambulance to load Rocky.

Just as he was being loaded onto the stretcher, Rocky's 'little brother' from the Haven came rushing in the arena. Meredith and Rocky were going to take Justin out to a movie that night.

"Rocky," he yelled, running down the stairs. Meredith grabbed Tommy's arm and silently pleaded with him to handle the little boy."Hey, Justin," Tommy said, meeting him just before he could get to the stretcher. The EMT's raised the stretcher. Meredith, who was standing next to him holding his hand, found her hand ripped from his grasp as they wheeled the stretcher out the doors to the ambulance. Meredith followed behind, seemingly on autopilot.

"What happened," Justin asked, straining to see what was happening.

"Rocky had a little accident, but he's going to be fine. Meredith's going with him. I don't think they can take you tonight, so how about if you go with Kimberly and me," Tommy asked.

"I want to check on Rocky," Justin said.

"Let me change and we'll get Kimberly, see a movie and then check on Rocky. By then, Meredith should be able to tell us what's going on. Sound good," Tommy asked him.

Justin nodded his head and followed Tommy to the locker room. Adam mentioned heading out and telling everyone else what happened. They would head to the hospital and see what the story was on Rocky's injury.

Adam got in his car and headed home. He called the hospital when he got home and was connected with Meredith.

"Hey Adam. Rocky's still getting tests. He hurt his back, but they don't know how badly until they get these tests back. He's hurting pretty badly. I called Billy and he's supposed to see if he can help," Meredith understood what she meant. Billy would attempt a remote scan to see if there was anything that could be done from a ranger standpoint. Adam knew that the power was supposed to help with healing, but they all knew it wasn't a miraculous cure. They still had to have traditional medicine and, depending on the injury, most of the time the power just shortened the recovery times.

"Tommy and Kim took Justin to the movies, so they'll be by to see Rocky after that. Will you call us if you need to? The rest of us will be by in the morning. You know Tommy isn't going to let you stay there by yourself," Adam said.

"I know. Rocky's mom went with him to x-ray, so she's here. She kept giving me these weird looks. I'm not sure how to read her these days. Anyway, she asked if I was going to stay with him and I said I probably would. She can't do it because of the younger kids," Meredith said.

"OK. I'll see you in the morning. Call me if you need anything," Adam said.

"Sure. Thanks, Adam," Meredith said before hanging up the phone.

She looked back up the hall. She saw Rocky's mom coming back down the hall. Meredith walked toward Rocky's room.

"Meri, I want to apologize. I'm sorry I wasn't very friendly when I first saw you. I thought the worst and the fact that Rocky was insisting that you wait in the room with him kind of upset me. My son loves you. I've known that for a long time, but the fact that he asked if you could stay with him, made me a bit jealous," she said.

"Mama DeSantos, I totally understand. If you want to stay with Rocky, I won't. I can tell him I have something that has to be done and can't wait with him," Meredith offered.

"No. The fact that he wants you here and you're willing to stay is great. You and Rocky remind me of his father and myself. We were high school sweethearts. Look at us. 25 years and 6 kids later," she smiled. "And I do need a favor. They said Rocky might need an orthopedist. You're father is the best and I would like him to be involved, but they said they can't get him because he's not on call."

"I'll find out what they're talking about and then call dad. If he finds out something happened to Rocky and he wasn't called, he'd be really upset. He actually likes Rocky," Meredith said.

The doctor caring for Rocky came toward the women, Rocky's stretcher pushed behind him.

"Meredith, it's good to see you. Sorry it's here. This must be the boyfriend your father says is so wonderful," the doctor said.

"Yes, Dr. Stevens. Rocky and I have been dating for more than 2 years. Dad and mom really like him," Meredith said.

"Well, the results of Rocky's scan shows that he's going to need surgery on his hip. He's injured his back, but nothing that a little rest and physical therapy can't fix. It's this hip injury that has us concerned," he said.

"What exactly is wrong," Rocky's mom asked.

"He's fractured it. He's going to need an orthopedist to tell us what the course of treatment is going to be. Meredith, Mrs. DeSantos said she wanted your father on the case. I can't call him since he's not on call at the moment, but you can," he said.

"I'll call him right now," Meredith said, returning to the nurses station phone she'd used to speak with Adam.

"Hello," her dad said."Dad! I need you to come to the hospital," Meredith said."What's happened? Is it you or your brother," he asked.

"No, but Rocky got injured during karate practice and he's going to need some surgery. Rocky's mom wants you to do it. I want you to do it," she said.

"Who's his physician," he asked.

"Dr. Stevens," Meredith answered.

"Tell him I'll be there in fifteen minutes. I'll be his doctor of record. Don't worry sweetie, I'll take care of Rocky," her dad said before hanging up the phone.

Meredith walked back to the room. "Dad's on his way. He'll be his physician of record. He'll talk to you when he gets here and has a chance to see what he's dealing with, Mama DeSantos," she said.

"I'll get the stuff for you father. I don't have to tell you, Mrs. DeSantos, Dr. Oliver is the best of the best," he said."He has two wonderful children. That's enough for me," she said, hugging , who'd been given some major pain meds, called out for Meredith.

"Meri," he said."Yes, Rocky," she asked.

"Is everything OK? I don't know what happening," he said."Everything will be fine. You just need some surgery. My dad is going to take care of you and do the surgery," she said.

"Must be serious to call out the big guns," he said."He's doing it as a favor to his favorite child," Meredith said, smiling down at him."Don't let Tommy hear you say that. He might disagree," Rocky said."I'm daddy's little girl. Nothing tops that. Just like you're your mom's favorite and Tommy's my mom's. It's a boy girl thing," she said,"Whatever you say, babe," Rocky said, before closing his eyes again. Meredith kissed his forehead and sat in the chair next to the bed, never letting go of his hand.

Meredith watched Rocky's chest rise and fall in a deep pattern that indicated he'd fallen asleep thanks to the pain medication. She heard the deep baritone of her father in the hallway and untangled her hand from Rocky's and walked into the hallway.

"Hey Pumpkin," her father said, hugging her and kissing the top of her head.

"What are you going to have to do to Rocky," she asked.

"Well, I was telling his mom, he needs surgery to the bone and the fracture site. He has an act tabular fracture. You've seen those x-rays at home, Meri. I'm going to go in and plate the pelvic area. It's going to be painful, but he's young and will gain full mobility after several months. No karate for a while, but there are some exercises his therapist can do with him to keep him in shape," Dr. Oliver said."When will you do the surgery," Mrs. DeSantos asked.

"First thing in the morning. I'm going to order some lab work and have some blood standing by, just in case we need it. Sometimes those injuries can bleed and we don't want to be unprepared. It will take several hours, but I'll let you know as soon as I'm finished. Rocky's in good hands," Dr. Oliver said.

"OK. I'll sign those consents and go on home. Meredith offered to stay with Rocky," she said."That's sounds like my daughter," Dr. Oliver said.

The two parents stood back watching Meredith brush Rocky's hair back and kiss his forehead before sitting back in the chair and taking his hand.

"I'm going to say good night to Rocky and I'll be back in the morning before the surgery. Thank you, Dr. Oliver, for doing this for my son," she said."No problem and please, call me James. I have a feeling we're going to be close friends and judging by the way the kids are acting, probably family in the near future," he said.

"I don't doubt it and I can't think of a better woman for my son. Hopefully they'll wait until after college," she said.

"Rocky's a good boy. Meredith wants to be a doctor, so I'm sure they'll wait a bit," he said.

He shook hands with Mrs. DeSantos and turned around to head to the nurses station and prepare for Rocky's early morning surgery.

"I'll see you in the morning, mi hijo. This wonderful girlfriend of yours is going to spend the night with you in the room so you're not alone. Meri, call me if anything happens. I'll be by in the morning. Thank you for staying with him," she said, hugging Meredith."I wouldn't be anywhere else," Meredith said.

Mrs. DeSantos left the room, comforted by the fact that Meredith would watch out for Rocky in her absence.

Dr. Oliver came into the room. "Meri, I'll be back in the morning to prep everything. I'll get Tommy to get some clothes together for you so you can change. They're moving him to the ortho floor and they're bringing you a bed to sleep in. Try to get some sleep," her father said."Dad, do you think I could observe? If I'm going to be a doctor I'd like to see what happens," she said."I'll see if it's OK, but generally I can do what I want when I've got the OR. You'll have to stay out of the way, but I don't have a problem with you scrubbing in to watching. You're mother could help you get ready. I'll see you in the morning. Love you, pumpkin," he said, dropping another kiss on her head.

"Love you, too, Daddy," she said, before turning her attention back to Rocky.

Twenty minutes later, they wheeled Rocky's stretcher to another room and Meredith prepared for the night ahead of her.

She settled down next to Rocky's bed and flipped through the TV channels.

Her communicator beeped."Yeah," she said."Meri, can I come in," Tommy asked.

"Sure," she , Tommy appeared on the other side of the room in a flash of white."How is he," he asked.

"Hurting. Dad's going to operate in the morning. He's going to be out of commission for a while, though. You might have to pass on the power to someone," she said."Did you have an idea," Tommy asked.

"Billy," she said, without hesitation.

"That sounds like a good idea. I'll talk to Zordon and see what he thinks," he said.

Meredith reached into Rocky's bag and pulled out his morpher.

"Here's Rocky's stuff. You might have to get the transfer going quickly. You never know who might decide to use this as an opportunity to strike," Meredith said.

"Let me know when Rocky gets out of surgery. I'll let the school know what you're doing. I don't think anyone will have a problem. I'll check back in with you tomorrow. Here's your clothes. Kimberly got stuff out for you because she said I'd get all the wrong stuff," he said.

"I'm staying in the hospital with my boyfriend. I hardly think high fashion is on the agenda," Meredith said."Wow, you are worried about Rocky. You've never said anything like that before," Tommy tossed a box of tissues at him. "Go tell everyone what's going on and that I'll update everyone after the surgery," she said.

"Right, little bit. I'll see you in the morning," Tommy said, hugging his sister."He's going to be fine. He's got you taking care of him," Tommy said before he left the room in a streak of white light.

Meredith settled down for the night.

Rocky woke up several times, but all he wanted was the assurance that Meredith was in the room with him. She promised she was staying right there and he drifted back to sleep. The nurses gave him pain medication every time he woke up because Meredith could tell that he was in pain, even if he said nothing about it.

The next morning she was awakened by her mother."Meredith Oliver, you have to get up, right now," her mother cracked one eye opened and realized where she was and sat up in the bed.

"Hey honey. Here are some OR scrubs for you to wear. They'll be in to give Rocky something to calm him down before we take him to the OR. I'm sure he'll want to know you're going to be in there with him," she took the scrubs and went into the bathroom. She brushed her teeth and put her hair into a ponytail so it was out of her face. She put on the scrubs and shook her head. 'Too bad Kimberly can't see THIS fashion statement,' she thought to herself.

She stepped out of the bathroom to a room full of people. Rocky's parents were in the room along with Meredith's own parents. Tommy stood off to the side. Meredith stood next to her brother, who wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

"Couldn't let you wait alone you know," he said."Thanks," she said.

Dr. Oliver explained the procedure and made sure Rocky understood what was going to happen. He was then sedated and started cracking jokes he thought were funny. Rocky's parents kissed him and said they'd see him when he came back to his room and they went with Tommy to wait in the waiting walked next to the stretcher. Just before they took him in, he tugged on Meredith's hand. She leaned down and he whispered, "I love you and you look really sexy in that outfit. You'll have to get some of those," he said tried not to look shocked by what he said and let the orderly wheel him into the OR.

"What did he say dear," her mom asked."Nothing except I love you," she said, covering quickly. Leave it to Rocky to embarrass her in a situation he would have NO recollection.

Several hours later, Meredith went into the waiting room and told everyone that Rocky was out of surgery. She said Dr. Oliver was giving the post-op orders to the nurses and then he'd be up to talk to them about the surgery.

"He's going to be out of it for a good twelve hours, so I'm going to go and get some sleep and come back later on tonight. Is that OK with you guys," Meredith asked, looking at Rocky's parents.

"That's fine Meri. You need to take care of you. Rocky wouldn't want anything to happen to you because you were worried about him," his mom hugged his parents and she and Tommy left the waiting room. She went back to the recovery room and went to Rocky's bed."OK, Tarzan. I'm going to get some sleep, so you sleep, too. Your mom is going to hang out with you, so don't say anything stupid. I love you and I'll be back in a little while," she said. She kissed his cheek and rejoined her brother.

She told her parents she was going home with Tommy and they headed out the hospital doors."Billy's taken Rocky's powers temporarily. It was something seeing him as the blue ranger again. We should be good until Rocky returns," Tommy said."You know, bro, Rocky might not be able to take the powers back before the deadline for us to give them up. I mean we're supposed to hand them over in eight months. If Rocky's still getting PT, he probably won't have them back. Maybe we should look for a permanent replacement for him. He'd have to do it anyway before the deadline," Meredith said."That's a good point. Did you hear anything about your powers," Tommy asked as they drove home.

"Zordon said that I won't be able to pass them to anyone. He said the purple power won't be reactivated for some time. He said that the purple power would choose it's successor and it won't be anyone on the next team," she said.

Meredith walked into the house and went straight to her room. She jumped in the shower then pulled on a t-shirt of Rocky's, a pair of karate pants and slipped into bed. She was exhausted. She trusted someone to wake her up in several hours to see Rocky.

She didn't know that her alarm was going to be to morph and fight. Her visit with Rocky was going to be delayed several hours.

*** So we've had Rocky's accident and his replacement is Billy, which I like much better. Justin will appear but not for a bit. Next installment: Trouble Lurking. _Jason and Kimberly were walking home from the Youth Center. Tommy had been spending time with Meredith at the hospital as she observed Rocky's therapy. Jason wanted to check on his friend, so he and Kimberly headed to the hospital. Suddenly, they were confronted by minions belonging to Divatox. In a flash, they were knocked unconscious by some kind of mist and delivered to Divatox in her submarine. _Meredith is going to have to confront her unresolved feelings for Jason. What's going to happen and with Meredith dealing with her Jason problem who's going to keep Tommy grounded with Kimberly kidnapped?*** -mereditholiver


	20. Trouble Lurking

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the character of Meredith and this writing. All else belongs to PR and whoever owns them at the moment.

Trouble Lurking

"Rocky, you need to take it easy. Dad's going to be really upset if you ruin his handiwork," Meredith said to her boyfriend. Rocky's surgery had been successful. He needed to stay in the hospital for a few more days. He had just recently been allowed to get out of bed and get into a reclining chair. Rocky wasn't satisfied with his progress and was pushing himself. Meredith and Tommy had been scolding him about what he needed to do and to be careful.

"Meri's right, man. You can't push yourself or you'll do more harm than necessary to yourself," Tommy said.

"Is Kimberly coming by today," Rocky asked.

Meredith wiped the sweat from his forehead, another sign he was pushing himself too hard.

"Yeah. She and Jason are supposed to come by," Tommy said.

"Is everything going OK with the team," Rocky asked, squeezing Meredith's hand as she sat next to him."Billy's a natural. I hate that you aren't there, but at least we don't have to worry about Billy not having our backs," Meredith said.

Tommy glanced at his watch."Kim should have been here by now. I hope nothing's happened," he said, looking out the window."If something happened, we would have been called, you know that, Tommy," Meredith said, trying to reassure her brother.

Jason and Kimberly were walking home from the Youth Center. Tommy had been spending time with Meredith at the hospital as she observed Rocky's therapy. Jason wanted to check on his friend, so he and Kimberly headed to the hospital. Suddenly, they were confronted by minions belonging to Divatox. In a flash, they were knocked unconscious by some kind of mist and delivered to Divatox in her submarine.

Alpha's scanners started going haywire. Every alarm was ringing and there was an uneasiness around the entire Power Chamber.

"WHAT SEEMS TO BE THE TROUBLE, ALPHA."

"Zordon, it's Divatox," Alpha said.

"SHE'S RETURNED. NOTIFY THE RANGERS."

"Well, that's another problem. Divatox has kidnapped the pink and gold rangers," Alpha said.

"THIS IS INDEED DISTRESSING NEWS. NOTIFY THE REMANING RANGERS. WE MIGHT HAVE TO GET KATHERINE TO TAKE THE NEW POWERS WE ARE WORKING ON IN ORDER TO SAVE KIMBERLY AND JASON."

"Right away, Zordon," Alpha said.

Tommy and Meredith's communicators beeped."This is Tommy."

"You and Meredith are needed at the Power Chamber," Alpha looked at Rocky. "Go on. I'll be fine," he said. "I'll be back as soon as I can," she said, before kissing him.

"We're on our way," Tommy said and they disappeared in their respective colors. Rocky prayed the power would protect them.

Tommy and Meredith arrived in the Power Chamber to find Aisha, Adam, Billy, Zack and Katherine already there."What are you doing here, Katherine? Zack," Meredith asked. "Where are Jason and Kimberly?"

"THAT'S THE REASON KATHERINE IS HERE. RANGERS, A WITCH NAMED DIVATOX HAS KIDNAPPED JASON AND KIMBERLY. SHE PLANS TO USE THEM AS SACRIFICES TO MALIGORE, AN EVIL ENTITY SHE PLANS ON MARRYING."

"What is it with these evil women? Are they desperate," Meredith asked.

"WE HAVE BEEN WORKING ON NEW POWERS FOR YOU FOR QUITE SOME TIME. WE BELIEVE THAT THE ONLY WAY TO SAVE JASON AND KIMBERLY IS TO ASK SOME OLD FRIENDS TO HELP."

"So Katherine and Zack are going to take powers that are meant for Kimberly and Jason," Tommy asked.

"Yes, Tommy. Since these are new powers they should have no problem take possession of the powers. We'll talk about the transfer of power when Jason and Kimberly are back with us," Alpha said.

"PREPARE TO TAKE YOUR NEW POWERS."

The Rangers gathered around and they immediately felt the new power take over their new Turbo rangers stood in their new suits, ready to take on the witch Divatox.

"HEAD OUT TO THE HARBOR AND BOARD THE GHOST GALLIEON. IT WILL TAKE YOU INTO THE NEMESIS TRIANGLE. MAY THE POWER PROTECT YOU."

The rangers teleported to the harbor and found themselves in front of a ship that looked older thanmZordon. Tommy led the leery rangers up the walkway to the deck of the ship."Ew. Somebody forgot to pay the cleaning lady," Meredith said.

The rangers entered the ship and began to explore the decks.

Billy found the box that would accept their turbo keys and each ranger put their key in the box. The ship came to life, raising it's own sails and sailing toward the triangle.

"Guess it doesn't need GPS," Adam said.

"Why don't we head below and catch some sleep. I have a feeling we might need it," Tommy rangers went below decks. Tommy and Meredith took one room, Aisha and Katherine took another and Adam, Zack and Billy took the final room, which had three beds.

Meredith sat down on the bed and looked at her brother.

"I certainly hope that you have a plan. I know you have to be going crazy because Kimberly's been kidnapped," she said."Yeah, but I'm trying to stay calm. Nothing has ever been solved by me going off half cocked," he said.

"How will we know when we get there," she asked her brother."How do we know about anything as rangers," he asked her."Because it's too strange to be true," they said and Meredith smiled at Tommy and stretched out on the bed. She closed her eyes and hoped Rocky was OK. She hated that she hadn't been able to tell him what was happening and she hoped he could come up with some excuse as to why she wasn't by his side.

What seemed like minutes later, the boat was rocked by a violent thunderstorm. The lightning struck the various raised sails but didn't catch them on fire.

"Guess this is our cue," Tommy said.

The rangers met just below the main deck and joined their keys. Instantly they were pulled through the dimension and the sky cleared. They ran topside and looked ahead."Look. Guess that's the lost island of Muranthias," Adam said.

"I can't wait to write this paper, 'What I Did on My Spring Vacation.' I went to a creepy island no one knows exists and fought some being I don't even know about," Aisha said.

The boat neared the shore and they went to the holds where their turbo vehicles were already stowed. The rangers piled into the cars and headed toward the shore.

Kimberly and Jason had worked to get free. Kimberly managed to swim through the opened hatch before it closed, trapping Jason on the ship. When she arrived on shore, she was immediately taken prisoner by the natives on the island."Could this get any worse," she said.

As she was tied up and placed on a crude transport, she tried to see what was happening around heard the natives chant and she could only assume they knew the guy she was supposed to be fed to. She hoped Tommy and the rest of her friends were able to find her. She and Jason had lost their morphers in the initial kidnapping, making them unable to morph.

As they neared the temple, Kimberly felt them stop. She turned her head and saw Jason, chained and blindfolded.

She didn't know what to do. She hoped the rangers were coming, but she didn't know how they would find them.

The rangers stood atop the highest mountain on the island. Adam took a survey with his binoculars and found a group of natives gathered near the center of the island."That must be were they have Kim and Jason," he said, handing the binoculars to Tommy.

"Let's morph and go rescue them," Tommy said.

"Shift into Turbo." The rangers morphed into the Turbo Rangers and took off toward the center of the island.

Jason and Kimberly were tied together and placed over the pit to prepare them for their sacrifice.

The rangers noticed what was happening and tried to prevent the duo from being claimed by the lava. Meredith and Tommy ran toward the minions that were lowering their friends into the fire.

Tommy managed to untie Kimberly and he and Meredith went to work on Jason. An explosion knocked Meredith and Tommy backward and sent Jason plummeting into the fire."NO! JASON," Meredith screamed and started toward the volcano. Tommy wrapped his arms around his sister. "Meri, don't," he said. Meredith sank down on the explosion rocked the volcano and Jason appeared in front of them."Oh, isn't that cute. Tommy is once again protecting Meredith. She's a power ranger and yet she still needs protecting," Jason said, an evil glint in his eye and his voice nearly unrecognizable.

Meredith tried to get up, but Jason pounced and held her to the ground. He removed her helmet, casting it aside as if it were a piece of paper."Is that why Rocky is such a better boyfriend? He lets you feel like you can be protected? Since you started dating him you act helpless. That used to be Kimberly's act," Jason stared at Jason. She knew the guy she had loved once was still in there and she tried appealing to him.

"Jase, you don't mean that," she said, her voice betraying the strength she hoped to convey. Jason picked her up and pinned her to the wall. "Oh but I do. You know why I cheated on you? Because you didn't give me the time of day. You were spending all your time with your brother. Then you didn't even wait that long before you were with Rocky. Tell me, Meri, did you think about getting together with him the day we broke up? Did you have it all mapped out that you were going to be with a red ranger and it didn't matter which red ranger? It's a good thing the newest red ranger is your brother or Rocky'd be left out in the cold. Tell me something else, does Rocky ever make you feel like this," Jason said before grabbing her and pulling her to him and kissing her.

For a split second, Meredith allowed herself to kiss Jason before she came to her senses and slapped Jason. The slap echoing in the cavern.

"Shut up Jason," Meredith said. She loved Rocky and her heart had been broken when Jason cheated on her and they broke up.

Jason released his hold on Meredith. Adam handed the discarded helmet to Tommy to give to Meredith."You want to know what I thought, Jase? That at one time you were my hero. You were my knight. You were the one I wanted to protect me. You were the one that I wanted to be with. I loved you. I loved you with everything I had. I might have been able to forgive you for what happened, but it seemed too big a task," she said.

"You wanted Rocky," he said, his deep brown eyes boring through hers."I wanted you. I always wanted you, but I didn't want you to pressure me. I wanted you to be patient and realize how special our relationship was. I wanted you to want me, but respect me. When you went and slept with Emily, not once but several times, I couldn't handle it. I wanted so badly to be your first. I wanted you and I to have something that only we could ever share. After the Emily incident, I couldn't share that with you because someone would always have your first. You might have had mine, but I was going to have to share that memory and I didn't want to. I couldn't be with you after that because I couldn't trust you," Meredith said. Jason's eyes started to lose some of their evil glint. She thought she might be getting through to him when he turned around and knocked her off her feet. Tommy jumped to her defense and Jason started in on him."You ruined my team. You brought in these half-assed jokers. You have some on this team that would rather shop then fight. You're a horrible excuse for a leader. You were leader when the original powers were destroyed. How'd that work out for you guys," Jason said before planting a spin kick into Tommy's mid-section. Tommy staggered back.

The blue ranger jumped into help and Jason took all his anger and hostility out on the blue ranger, but he didn't know that the blue ranger was Billy. Apparently in his evil state he wasn't rational and assumed the blue ranger was Rocky."And you. You stole the only thing in my life that I ever loved. I know that I shouldn't have cheated on Meredith, but I was being neglected and I had a weak moment. You swoop in and steal something that should never have belonged to you," Jason said, lunging at the blue blue ranger who fell and Jason began pounding him. Meredith realized what was happening and jumped in before Billy was killed by this rampaging, evil Jason."STOP IT," Meredith screamed. "THAT'S NOT ROCKY."

Jason stopped his pounding and looked at Meredith."Stop lying you bitch," he said and Tommy visibly flinched at Jason's use of such language, but Meredith continued."That's not Rocky. It's Billy, remember. Rocky is in the hospital and Billy's the new blue ranger," she said as calm as possible.

Jason got off Billy and Katherine and Aisha went running to him. They removed his helmet to prove to Jason that it was Billy, not Rocky. Jason took in the sight that was his bloodied and broken childhood friend, he broke down. The evil that had overtaken him had run out. The realization of what evil had caused him to do hit him like a slap in the face. There wasn't a thing that he could do to fix it and then he saw Meredith, who was being held by Tommy, pulled away from her brother and headed to Jason.

Holding her helmet in her hands, she approached Jason. The sight of her sobbing ex broke her heart. Meredith wrapped him in her arms and let him cry. The choking sobs of Jason hit everyone on the team hard. The lava pit that contained Maligore was now quiet and contained crystal clear water instead of lava.

Meredith pulled away from Jason and led him outside the cave. The rest of the rangers joined them and they all boarded the Megazord for their trip back looked at Meredith who held up her hand to silence him."We'll talk about it at home," she said and went back to her control panel.

When the rangers arrived back at the Power Chamber, Jason and Meredith went off together to discuss what had happened between them."Meri," he said."Yes," she said."I can't believe some of the things I said and did while under that spell. I never meant to hurt you," he said."I thought that too, Jason, at one time, but now I can't be so sure," she said.

"What do you mean," he said."There's always a little truth behind the evil otherwise it has nothing to hold on to. You are jealous of Rocky and me. That's why you went after Billy because you thought it was Rocky. You wanted to hurt Rocky and if that meant hurting me or him, you were going to do whatever you had to do. You kissed me during that whole thing believing it was the only way to convince me," she said."Meri, I wouldn't hurt either one of you," he said."Again, Jason, I want to believe that. You know, if you had asked me to forgive you and get back together six months ago, I would have done it. Now that I'm happy and secure with Rocky I can't imagine giving that up. Now, even if Rocky and I break up, I can't be with you. I can't trust you," she said.

"You kissed me back. It may have been for just a second, but you DID kiss me back. You responded to that kiss, Mer," Jason said, looking into her green eyes."Yeah and that's why I can't trust you. I shouldn't have allowed it to happen. You knew that that would drive a wedge between Rocky and myself. You are counting on that. I'm sorry Jason, but I can't give you what you want," she said."So where does that leave us," he said."Friends. At least friends for now. I know I'll never go out with you again, but I hope to have a wonderful friendship with you. We did have a great one of those in the past," she said."If that's what you're willing to give me, then I'm game," he smiled at Jason and headed back. She said goodbye to her friends and headed back to see Rocky. She wondered how he'd react to what had happened.

Jason stood, looking at the space Meredith had been standing. He looked up and saw Tommy watching him. He knew he was going to have to talk to him and he should get it over with now.

"Bro, about earlier," Jason started."You meant what you said. You think I've taken the team downhill. You don't think this team is as good as 'yours' was," Tommy said."I don't think that, Tommy," Jason said, knowing his actions while evil had hurt everyone."There's always a little nugget of truth in evil ramblings," he said."Meri said the same thing," Jason smiled at the mention of his sister. "She's a smart woman. Jase, I was asked to be the leader. I didn't ask for it. Zordon wanted me as leader," Tommy said."I understand that but back then it was really tough to deal with," Jason said.

"And you think Meri took your breakup lightly? She cried the whole time until Rocky forced her to rejoin the world. I owe him for saving my sister. She's more like me than she realizes and I was afraid she would retreat into herself," Tommy said.

"I know. I never wanted to hurt Meredith and I can see how I've ruined everything," Jason said."You didn't ruin anything, you just didn't realize all the resentment you've been holding onto," he said."I guess I've got a lot to think about," Jason said.

"We're all a team. We're all friends. Meredith is your friend now and you are hers. It's probably going to take a while before Rocky forgives you for what you did to Meri, but he will. Meri will ask him and he'll do it because he'll do anything for her," Tommy said, before turning around and heading out the door. He stopped inside the doorway and turned back to Jason. "Meri did love you and would have done anything to make you happy. I'm just really sorry that you didn't realize that then. Now she's happy and if you've ruined that, I don't know how forgiving I will be," Tommy said.

"Do you still trust me," Jason asked. "I know that you will always have my back and the backs of any of the rangers. It's what happens outside the ranger duties that has me and my sister worried," Tommy said and continued out the door.

Jason stood in the now empty room and reflected on what the Oliver twins had just said to him. He hoped he hadn't ruined anything for Meredith. He may still love her, but he never wanted to cause her pain. He hoped he'd be forgiven. He stared at the ceiling and closed his eyes, reflecting on what happened. Katherine stuck her head in the door."There you are. Are you ready to go back," she asked.

"Yeah. Are you made about what happened with Meredith," he asked her."No. It was a long time ago and what happened on that island doesn't have any bearing on now, since you are no longer evil," she grabbed her hand and they teleported to Jason's house.

***Next installment: Vacation. _After the stressful time the rangers had the last few weeks, Zordon decided to surprise them by arranging for them to head to Phaedos. Phaedos was a beautiful island that was the vacation land of the who's who in the celebrity world. The island was secretly owned by Zordon under a fictitious company. The rangers were permitted to go to the ultra secluded, secure island and enjoy a little R&R. "We're going to Phaedos? And Zordon actually owns the island? Wow, this is going to be so awesome," Kimberly nearly screamed at her boyfriend and his sister. "It is a bit of a surprise, but I do think we need that vacation. I'm amazed at how Zordon got our parents to let us go on this trip," Meredith said. "I know. Telling each of us that we'd been nominated in a contest and we'd all been picked for this trip was a bit farfetched, but I guess our parents bought it because we leave in the morning," Tommy said. _The rangers are ready for fun in the sun, but it turns out to be more trouble in paradise.*** -mereditholiver


	21. Phaedos

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the writing contained within and the character of Meredith. This was borrowed from another site and twisted for my own purposes. PR belongs to someone else.

PHAEDOS

After the stressful time the rangers had the last few weeks, Zordon decided to surprise them by arranging for them to head to Phaedos. Phaedos was a beautiful island that was the vacation land of the who's who in the celebrity world. The island was secretly owned by Zordon under a fictitious company. The rangers were permitted to go to the ultra secluded, secure island and enjoy a little R&R.

"We're going to Phaedos? And Zordon actually owns the island? Wow, this is going to be so awesome," Kimberly nearly screamed at her boyfriend and his sister.

"It is a bit of a surprise, but I do think we need that vacation. I'm amazed at how Zordon got our parents to let us go on this trip," Meredith said.

"I know. Telling each of us that we'd been nominated in a contest and we'd all been picked for this trip was a bit farfetched, but I guess our parents bought it because we leave in the morning," Tommy said.

"You'd think our parents would realize something is up with the way our teenage years have been," Meredith said."I'm not going to think about it. I'm ready to have some fun in the sun," Kimberly said.

Tommy left to walk Kimberly home so she could finish packing. Meredith went upstairs to finish her packing. Rocky had been told he could go on the trip, but only if he took it easy. Meredith promised her dad that she'd keep a close eye on Rocky and make sure he didn't do anything crazy.

Meredith was putting her new purple string bikini in her suitcase when her phone rang. She picked up the handset and went back into her closet.

"Hey, babe," Rocky said.

"Hey, hon," Meredith answered."You finished packing," Rocky asked."Not hardly. I'm having such a problem figuring out what to wear," she said."Well, if I can suggest a bikini and nothing else," Rocky said."What about pajamas, Rocky," Meredith asked.

"Who said anything about pajamas," Rocky said, his voice husky,"Down boy. Can we get to the island first," she asked.

"Fine, but you had better pack something for me in that suitcase of yours," he said."Boy, you're awfully demanding for someone who's been off his feet for a while," Meredith said."Exactly," Rocky said.

Meredith laughed at her boyfriend. She knew the lack of physical contact had been torture for her boyfriend.

"Don't worry. With Tommy and Kimberly occupied with themselves, we will have plenty of time together," Meredith said."OK. You and Tommy picking me up in the morning," he asked."Yeah. We convinced our parents that since we were going to be returning at weird hours, we should drive ourselves. We'll head to the power chamber and go from there," Meredith said."Then I guess I'll settle for seeing you in the morning," Rocky said."OK. I love you," she said."I love you, too," he tossed the phone onto her bed and continued raiding her closet.

She pulled out several pairs of jean shorts and folded them into her suitcase. She took some of her various purple t-shirts and folded them into her suitcase as well. She put her underwear and socks in the suitcase and tried to decide on what dresses to take along.

She stood in her closet, flipping through her dresses before deciding on her favorite purple sundress with various shades of purple as the dress dropped down. She also pulled out her deep purple evening dress with the sparkly accents around the top and thinning out as they went down the dress. She put her silver peep toed sandals in the bag and zipped it. She threw some pj's and workout clothes in the overnight bag she planned to put her make up and such inside.

Putting all her toiletries she planned to take in one corner of the vanity. She would use them in the morning and put them in the bag at the last minute.

She heard Tommy's bedroom door open and went to stand in the bathroom doorway that led to his room.

"Kimberly finish packing," Meredith asked her brother."I helped her with a few choices. But of course she's probably going to have six more bags by the time we get to her in the morning," Tommy said."Speaking of, don't you think you should pack yourself? You can't get away with karate pants and swimming trunks for two weeks," Meredith said."I know. I'm going to pack right now," Tommy said, turning to his closet.

"Want some help," Meredith asked."Sure," Tommy said, pulling some shirts out of his closet.

Meredith entered his room and was always amazed at the contrast his room showed about his life. Tommy was a dedicated martial artist. He ate well and exercised regularly. With the dedication he showed in those aspects, one would think his room would be spotless. Alas, Tommy was a typical male. He had clothes thrown near the hamper, but nothing made it inside.

His clean clothes still sat on the chair where Meredith had set them two days ago.

She pulled two of his favorite shirts from the pile of clean clothes and set them in his duffle bag.

She pulled some shorts out of the bottom drawer of his dresser and added a pair of jeans.

"I am so not getting into your underwear drawer. I'm scared of what I might find," she said.

"Do you know where my green plaid PJ pants are? I know I put them in the hamper," Tommy said, grabbing several pairs of boxers and socks out of the went back to the chair holding the clean clothes and produced the pants in question.

Holding them up, she said, "You know, if you actually put your own clothes away, this wouldn't happen."Tommy took the pants and added them to his duffle.

"I think I'm finished," he said.

"OK. I'm going to bed since mom and dad think we're heading out early to catch a flight. We have to get Kim and Rocky at those early hours, too, you know," Meredith said."I know. We've got it covered," Tommy said.

"Good night, then," Meredith said, heading toward her bedroom.

"Night, sis," he called to slipped under the covers of her bed, excited about the upcoming two weeks. Spring break at an island resort sounded like a wonderful idea and Meredith knew everyone needed a bit of a break.

The next morning, Tommy and Meredith picked up Rocky and Kimberly and headed to the power chamber. Shortly after they arrived, the rest of their friends arrived for the trip.

They gathered their luggage and Zordon teleported them to the sunny, tropical island of Phaedos.

They teleported to the beach that was outside the back of their bungalows.

Of course, the couples paired themselves off. Tommy and Kimberly took the first bungalow. Rocky and Meredith, the second. The third and fourth went to Zack and Aisha and Jason and Katherine. Adam and Tanya took the fifth one. Billy had decided not to join the group on their vacation because he had some important science conference he wanted to attend and he was meeting with the people from MIT regarding his scholarship. Everyone knew how much Billy wanted that scholarship and had been sorry he wasn't on the island, but glad he was getting his chance to do what he wanted. He promised he'd watch out for Angel Grove and contact them if anything happened while they were gone.

Each bungalow featured the bed and bath area with the five cabins joined together by a common living area with fully stocked kitchen. The group could hang out together in the space if they chose or retire to their private 'houses' with their own bathroom space. The common living space had a giant television and entertainment center with the latest in stereo equipment. Several large, plush couches sat in the space. The large dining room table had room for twelve. The kitchen featured a huge fridge filled with all their favorites and large industrial stove that would allow them to cook some while they were on vacation.

There was a large pool and hot tub just off the common living area and the back faced the ocean and offered a path to lounge chairs and such set out on the private bungalow had a whirlpool tub and large glassed in shower.

The bedroom featured a California King bed and the doors opened out to the ocean. They could be opened so the sheer curtains the hung in front of them could blow in the wind or closed to allow for ultra privacy.

Meredith and Rocky were amazed at how wonderful the whole area seemed. They put their clothes in the dresser that was placed under the giant wall mounted TV and tossed their luggage into the closet after hanging up the necessary items in the closet. Meredith looked out onto the veranda and saw some lounge chairs and an outdoor fireplace. There was a common veranda between the third and fourth bungalows that featured the same style fireplace, but larger. Meredith knew they'd be using it.

She jumped when Rocky came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her nuzzled her neck. Meredith closed her eyes and leaned back against him."You're supposed to be taking it easy," she said, turning around to face him."Oh, this is not difficult," Rocky said, smiling as he kissed her."You know what I mean," Meredith said."Babe, I have to be with you. I feel like I neglected you while I was recovering," he said."You didn't. I'm just glad you weren't hurt worse. Seeing you on the floor like that was ten times worse than the Ivan Ooze incident," she said to him."I'm just fine and I want to show you just how fine I am," he took her hand and pulled her toward the bed. "Seems a shame not to test out this bed," he said, pulling her closer to him.

Unable to resist his charms and wanting to be with him, Meredith gave in and dropped down on the bed with Rocky. They removed clothing and were soon caught up in passion that could only be completed by two people who had been laid wrapped in the bed sheets shortly after their love making and found themselves not wanting to get up. Meredith closed her eyes and wondered if the others were having as much fun as she so early in their trip.

Kimberly put her clothes into the drawers and closets. Tommy laughed at the amount of stuff Kimberly had brought for the vacation. He managed to find some space in the dresser for his few clothing items and sat on the bed watching Kimberly.

She slipped into the bathroom with a small pink bag and Tommy assumed she was putting her toiletries in the bathroom. He leaned back on his hands on the bed and took in the room. He noticed the stuff outside on the veranda and hoped he and Kimberly would get to spend some time out there, looking at the stars. He must have been daydreaming because he didn't hear Kimberly open the door and step back into the room.

"Hey handsome," she turned back to the sound of her voice and was immediately awestruck. There was Kimberly in a pink lace negligee with a matching pink lace thong."Do you like," she asked in a teasing to speak, Tommy nodded his approached him and pushed him further down on the bed. She straddled him and lowered herself for a sizzling kiss. Tommy wrapped his arms around her and kissed her back. He slowly started to remove her negligee and she pulled off his clothes.

However, after Tommy's initial assistance with removing Kimberly's clothes, she took total control. Tommy, not used to being out of control, found himself not only aroused but liking this forceful and dominating Kimberly. He would have to tell her when blood flow returned to his brain. For now, he was content with enjoying himself.

Zack and Aisha looked at the rather large bed in their room. They looked at each other."Look, there is nothing wrong with us sharing a bed, but if you want, I can go and see if Adam will let me bunk with him and you and Tanya can have this room," Zack said.

Aisha thought about it, but decided that she could share a bed with Zack without it leading to anything.

"We can share the bed. It's big enough. Besides, I trust you not to do anything I don't want you to do," she said, reaching up to kiss him.

"You're amazing, you know that," he said to her."You're not too bad yourself," she said.

They both set about putting their clothes into the dresser and closet and sat down on the bed together and turned on the TV that hung over the fireplace in their bungalow. The cuddled on the bed and Aisha had to admit that it was better than cuddling on the couch. The group had decided not to get together until dinner, so they had the rest of the day to fend for themselves. They cuddled on the bed and watched the movie until they decided they needed to eat.

They left their bungalow and entered the common room, discovering it was empty.

"Well, do you want something to eat. We can take it back. I have a feeling we won't see Kimberly and Tommy until dinner, if at all," Zack said."Sure. Maybe there's frozen pizza," Aisha said, opening the the pizza, she set the oven and she and Zack sat on the large sofa in front of the giant television in the common room.

Twenty-five minutes later, Aisha and Zack took their pizza to their room to watch another movie. They wondered if they would be by themselves for the whole trip.

"Want to try the hot tub after dinner," Zack asked, cheese hanging from his chin.

Aisha, laughing at the site, took the cheese from his chin. "That sounds like a great idea. I have a new suit I want you to see," she said, smiling.

"Oh, then you know I'm game," Zack said, smiling at finished their lunch and leaned back on the bed to finish their movie.

Jason was stoked. He couldn't believe how totally awesome the island was. He also couldn't believe that he was staying in a room with his incredibly hot girlfriend. Life couldn't get any better for him.

Katherine came up behind him and kissed his back.

Jason turned around and took her in his arms. They shared a passionate kiss that left Jason screaming with desire for his girlfriend.

Katherine took the hint and untied the halter top of her pink and white polka dotted dress. Jason needed no further encouragement and took off his own shirt and pushed Katherine backward onto the bed. Soon they were caught up in their own little world. So eager was the couple, they never made it under the covers. When they finished, Katherine giggled. Jason looked at his girlfriend."No guy likes to hear laughter after sex, Katherine. It's very demoralizing," he said, smiling at her."I wasn't laughing at that. I was laughing at how we never made it under the covers," she said, kissing him.

"We were a little eager. You've been practicing a lot the last few weeks, so we haven't had any time alone. Now we have two wonderful weeks with each other, alone," he said, kissing her again."This is heaven," she said, leaning back into his arms.

"It certainly is," he said, closing his stayed in each other's arms until their stomachs protested that they needed food.

"Want to see if there is anything for sandwiches in the kitchen," Jason asked.

"That sounds like a great idea," Katherine said.

She sat up and started looking for her clothes. She found them and went into the bathroom to fix her hair and makeup. Jason gathered his clothes from the floor and pulled them back on while running his fingers though his hair.

Katherine came out of the bathroom and they walked to the common room. They saw the television on already, but no one was in the room. They opened the fridge and found all the fixings for sandwiches, so they made something for themselves. They sat down on the couch to enjoy their lunch and watch TV.

"We going to hit the beach later," Katherine asked."I thought we would. We're supposed to meet everyone for dinner at 5, so we have some time if you want to go down there now," he said."That sounds great," Katherine said, jumping up from the couch and heading back into their room.

Jason smiled at his girlfriends enthusiasm and followed her into the room.

They changed into their swimsuits. Jason went in the bathroom to get some beach towels and came out to find Katherine putting on one of his red shirts. While the thought made him smile, he realized which shirt she had chosen to wear.

"Katherine, I love that you want to wear one of my shirts, but can you wear a different one," he looked at him, bewildered. She stared at the shirt she had put on and didn't know why he didn't want her wearing it. It was red, much like many of the shirts in his wardrobe. It was one she had never seen before, but knew he wore it a lot because it was faded a bit. It had a white cut out of a ranger and said 'What Would the Red Ranger Do?' "Why can't I wear this one," she asked. She thought it was funny that he had a shirt about the red ranger when he'd previously been the red ranger.

"It's one of my favorites," he said. Katherine took it off and put on one that had some kind of wording on it in Japanese. Jason took the shirt and put it in the drawer."What's so special about that shirt, Jase," she asked him as he opened the doors to go outside.

"It was a gift and I happen to like it a lot," he to let the matter drop, she headed out the door and ran across the sand. Jason threw their stuff down and chased after her, finally catching her and playfully tossing her into the ocean.

"So, what do you think of this place," Adam asked Tanya as they unpacked."It's wonderful. Do you think we could sit out there tonight and watch the sunset," Tanya asked."If you want. We're meeting the gang for dinner at 5, so we should be back in time to watch it," Adam said.

"Great," Tanya said, her already wide smile getting pulled Tanya into his arms. "I'm glad you're here with me," he said.

"I'm glad you invited me," she kissed her then pressed his forehead to hers. "Who else would I bring," he asked."Well, Rocky if he wasn't already going on the this trip with Meredith," Tanya said, laughing.

"Well, that's probably true. Rocky has been my best friend forever. We've been through a lot as friends," Adam said.

"What do you want to do now," Tanya asked, sitting on the sat next to her on the bed. "Do you want to explore this little stretch of paradise? It's supposed to be the stomping grounds of the rich and famous," Adam said."That sounds like a great idea," she said.

They got up off the bed and headed out the door.

Everyone met in the common room at 5 and walked to the seafood restaurant in the hotel. They all enjoyed wonderful meals of seafood, before retiring back to their bungalows. On the walk back, Kimberly got the idea to play a game of 'Never I Have.'

"Why would we want to do that, Kim," Jason asked.

"Because we haven't all ever played as a group and I think it would be a lot of fun. Besides their's plenty of liquid courage back in the bungalow," she grumbled at the prospect of playing the game, but in the end everyone agreed. Tommy and Kimberly set up the shots and placed them in front of their friends.

"Rules are simple. We go around the circle and make a statement like 'Never have I worn my ranger suit at Halloween.' If you've done it, you take a drink. If you're 'it' you don't have to give a statement that has you taking a drink, you can say anything," Kimberly nodded in agreement and Kimberly said, "OK. I guess I'll start this round."

***Drinking and 'Never Have I' is never a good sign, but this will get really interesting. _I'm going to start, Kimberly said. "Never have I worn my ranger costume at Halloween." No one took a drink. Tommy was up next. "Never have I wished I could use my powers whenever I could," he said. Everyone took a drink on that one.*** -mereditholiver_


	22. What!

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the writing contained within and the character of Meredith. This was borrowed from another site and twisted for my own purposes. PR belongs to someone else.

WHAT!

The group sat on the large sofas in the common room. Kimberly put shot glasses in front of everyone and poured a shot for each. She put the bottle on the table and sat back against Tommy. Katherine looked at the drinks and asked "What is this game again?"

"Someone makes a statement like 'Never have I ever made out in school' and if you have done it, you take a drink. It's a more adult version of truth or dare," Jason said.

"I'm going to start, Kimberly said. "Never have I worn my ranger costume at Halloween." No one took a drink. Tommy was up next. "Never have I wished I could use my powers whenever I wanted," he said. Everyone took a drink on that one.

Meredith had the next round. "Never have I worn another ranger color," she said, smiling.

Tommy, Jason, Rocky, Zack and Adam took a gave his girlfriend an evil look. "That was a set up," he said. Meredith smiled and leaned back against him.

Rocky said, "Never have I been related to a ranger."

Tommy, Meredith and Tanya both took shots on that one.

Zack asked the question everyone was wondering, "Never have I slept with a teammate."

Jason, Katherine, Tommy, Kimberly, Meredith and Rocky took drinks. Tommy nearly choked when he saw Meredith and Rocky taking a drink.

"You two," Tommy said after his coughing spell."What did you think," Meredith asked.

"So is it just Rocky or was it Jason, too," Tommy asked."Not that it's any of your business, it's just Rocky," she said.

Rocky turned six shades of red.

Aisha, who was laughing at seeing the team leader trying to decide what to do about Rocky, came up with the next question.

"Never have I kept something an ex gave me."

Jason and Meredith took drinks on that one, leaving Rocky and Katherine in shock.

"What do you still have that your ex gave you," Rocky asked."Those amethyst earrings I sometimes wear were a gift from Jason. I offered to give them back, but he insisted that I keep them," she said.

Rocky seemed satisfied with the answer, but Meredith knew he wanted to talk about it when they were glared at Jason. "I assume you've kept something Meredith gave you," she said.

"That t-shirt you wanted to wear yesterday. Meri gave that to me," he said.

Katherine got up and stomped back to the room she shared with Jason.

Kimberly glared at her 'brother.' "Why would you do that," she asked him."It happens to be a very cool shirt," he said.

Rocky wasn't sure what to do. He got up off the couch and went into his room he shared with Meredith.

Meredith followed behind him.

"Guess that's the end of the game," Tanya said before everyone left and went to their rooms.

Tommy and Kimberly sat on the couch trying to figure out what just happened.

"What's the big deal," Tommy asked Kimberly.

"What do you mean? Meredith should have told Rocky those earrings were given to her by Jason. Jason should have told Katherine about the shirt," she said."It's earrings and a shirt. How does that make such a big difference," Tommy asked."Because, they aren't supposed to have secrets," she just listened to Kimberly. Not believing a word she was saying.

"What's the big deal, Kat? I happen to like that shirt. I would like it no matter who gave it to me," he said.

"Come off it, Jason. You would love to get back together with Meredith. You're holding onto that shirt because it means you still have a piece of her," Katherine yelled at him."Fine, you want me to get rid of it? Here, you can burn it in the outside fireplace," Jason said, giving her the shirt. He handed her the fire starter and opened the back door for her. Katherine took the shirt and the fire starter and threw it into the fire pit. She lit the shirt on fire and watched it burn."Just because I burned it doesn't mean I've forgiven you for what happened. I don't like you having anything of Meredith's around," Katherine said."I understand. Don't worry," Jason said, taking Katherine in his arms. He led her back inside and they sat on the bed trying to decide what to do with the rest of their evening.

"You're overreacting," Meredith said, trying to calm Rocky down.

"I'll buy you another pair of earrings. I didn't know they were from Jason," Rocky said.

"Jason gave those earrings to me right after my grandmother died. I think about her when I see them. It was probably the sweetest thing Jason ever did for me. It doesn't compare to everything you've done for me," Meredith said.

Rocky stared at his girlfriend. Part of him was angry that Meredith hadn't told him the truth about the earrings, but he did understand on another level.

Rocky wrapped Meredith in his arms and kissed the top of her head. "I understand, but I'd like you to pick out another pair for me to give to you. You can put those earrings in a safe or something. I'd rather not know they were around," Rocky said.

Meredith kissed him. "I'd rather get a ring from you instead of some earrings," she said."Well, maybe we can do that when we get home," Rocky said.

The couple hugged each other and decided to see if anyone wanted to check out the hot tub.

Meredith walked out of their room and walked to Tommy's room. She knocked on the door and heard a 'come in.'

"Hey, bro. You two want to hit the hot tub with Rocky and I? His back's a bit stuff and dad suggested hot tubs might help loosen it up," she said."Sounds like fun," Kim said. They agreed to join Meredith and Rocky in the hot tub.

Meredith crossed the entire group of rooms to find out if anyone else wanted to hang out in the hot tub.

Zack and Aisha wanted to a movie on one of their movie channels, so they were going to make popcorn and chill for the night.

Adam and Tanya decided to join the others in the hot tub along with Jason and Katherine.

Meredith changed into her new purple polka dot bikini. Rocky, wearing his blue striped swimming trucks was getting towels."How many do you think we'll need…" he trailed off upon seeing Meredith exit the bathroom. "Wow! That suit looks awesome on you," he said.

"Thanks. It's new. You're the first person to see me in it," she said, doing a little spin.

"I might have to give you a shirt to cover up with," he said, kissing her. Meredith wrapped her arms around his neck. "You look yummy without your shirt on, have I ever told you that," she asked smiled at her and took her hand to head out to the hot tub.

Kimberly put on her pink string bikini and was waiting for Tommy to find his red swimming trunks.

"Did you pack them," she asked him."Yes, Meri got them out of the drawer for me and put them in the bag," he said. He finally found them in the bottom drawer of the dresser. He slipped them on and followed Kimberly out to the patio.

The outdoor lights had been turned on and the outdoor fireplace was already going.

Seeing Meredith and Rocky setting some drinks and snacks on the picnic tables, Tommy asked who lit the fireplace.

"I think it was Jason and Katherine. Apparently Kat burned the shirt that Meri gave to Jason," Rocky said.

"Ah. What are you doing about the earrings," Tommy asked.

"Meri's putting them away and we're going to pick out a new pair for her," Rocky said.

They noticed Adam and Tanya coming outside, followed by Jason and Katherine. They all got in the hot tub, bringing along the bottle of tequila and some of the snacks.

Once everyone was snuggled in the seat on their side of the hot tub, Kimberly got the game going suggestions was met with groans, but everyone knew that they were going to play because Kimberly always got what she wanted.

"I'll start again. Never have I crushed on someone that I didn't end up dating."

The only ones that didn't drink on that one were Kimberly and Tommy.

The rest of the group looked at each other and wondered about their secret crushes.

"Who did you crush on," Meredith asked her boyfriend, shocked at his confession.

"Kimberly. That was before I knew about her and Tommy and I met you. I met Kimberly before I met you and you were with Jason for a while. I had crushes on both of you. What normal guy wouldn't," he asked. Meredith nodded her head and then Rocky asked her who her crush was. "Adam. I thought he was really sweet, but I knew he liked Trini. That was also before I knew Jason liked me and we got together," Meredith said.

"Katherine," Jason asked."Tommy. You," she asked.

"Trini," he said.

"Mine was Meredith. I didn't have any idea she had a crush on me," Adam said."I admit mine was Rocky. He just always seemed like such a great guy. Before I got to know Adam, I thought he was the perfect guy and Meredith was the luckiest girl in the world," Tanya said."I am," Meredith said, snuggling into Rocky.

"I would much rather do truth or dare," Jason said."Whatever you want to call it, I don't care," Kimberly said."OK, you have a truth or you take a shot," Jason said."Sounds totally fair," Tommy said.

"OK. Meredith, truth or dare," Jason asked her."Truth," she said.

"Did you tell Rocky everything that happened when I was evil," Jason glared at Jason. She'd told Rocky everything, minus the kiss that Jason had given her.

"I didn't tell him about that," she said.

"What didn't you tell me about that day," Rocky asked, concerned about what his girlfriend might be hiding.

"Jason grabbed me and kissed me when he was evil. Trying to get me to realize that I was still in love with him. It was nothing and I didn't think it was important," she said.

Rocky, trying not to get angry, just nodded his head. Meredith knew he wasn't happy with her at the moment, but he was willing to stick around.

Sensing the need to change the subject, Tommy spoke up. "Tanya, truth or dare," he asked.

"Truth," she answered."Would you have ever thought Adam was the power ranger type," he asked.

"No, he's too quiet normally. But I wouldn't have really picked anyone except for you and Jason as being the ranger type. Finding out all of you were or had been rangers was crazy," she said.

"Truth or dare, Kimberly," Tanya asked."Truth," she answered.

"Was Tommy your first," she asked,Kimberly's lip began to tremble. She knew they would ask this question and, while Tommy was her first, there was still times when she fell back to when she was kidnapped and what she had done. She didn't think anyone would understand and she certainly hoped that a certain someone would keep their mouth shut about it.

"Yes," she said.

They four couples continued playing the same game until Adam, Tanya, Kimberly and Tommy called it a wanted to shower before bed, so she left Jason in the hot tub. Rocky was feeling the effects of his few shots and decided to head to bed. Meredith and Jason went with them. Meredith wasn't ready for bed, so she took her book and went back out to the fire. She sat on the lounge chair and read for a few minutes.

Jason saw Meredith sitting on the patio and decided to join her.

"Hey, Mer," he said as he sat down."Hey, Jase. Katherine asleep," she asked."Yeah. Rocky," he asked.

"His back was bothering him. The hot tub loosened him up a bit, but he's still stiff and whatnot, so he fell asleep. He'll probably need something for his back in a few hours, so I'll have it all ready. I'm just not ready to sleep just yet. Our first night here has definitely been something interesting," she said.

"It sure has. Look, I'm sorry if I caused any bad blood between you and Rocky. I don't want to come between you two. I know how much you two love each other," Jason said.

"Thanks. I love Rocky very much," she said.

She watched Jason in the firelight. She had seen that distant look in his eye before and knew something was bothering him.

"What," she asked."I was just thinking about what we would be doing if we were still together. If I hadn't messed everything up," he said."Jase, we wouldn't still be together. I would have broken up with you when I found out how Rocky felt," Meredith said.

"Oh. Well, I guess it's a good thing you and Rocky together now. Good night, Meri," Jason said before turning back and going into his picked up her book and headed back into her room. She took off her robe and crawled into bed with Rocky. His arms immediately went around her and Meredith fell asleep.

The rest of the vacation had them all swimming, diving, boating, building sand castles and doing some daring stunts. Rocky couldn't cliff dive like the rest and Katherine was scared, so Jason and Meredith ended up diving off the cliff. When they started to go over, Jason grabbed Meredith's hand. This little gesture didn't go unnoticed by Katherine.

By the end of the trip, Katherine was ready to break up with Jason.

The last day they were there, however, tragedy struck. Jason was surfing and was caught in an undertow. When he resurfaced, he was hit in the head by his surfboard, knocking him unconscious. Meredith was able to save him, but Zordon had to teleport him to the hospital. Meredith, Rocky and Katherine told the hospital he'd been injured while surfing at a local beach. They took him back to be examined while the trio waited outside.

After an eternity, the doctor came out into the waiting area.

"Mr. Scott is awake and he's asking to see his girlfriend," he said. At those words Katherine started to get up but the doctor continued. "Miss Oliver," the doctor said."WHAT?" everyone said."Mr. Scott wants to see Miss Oliver," the doctor repeated."This must be Jase's idea of a joke. I'll go in there and talk to him and make sure he knows we don't find it funny," she said.

She followed the doctor back to Jason's room."Hey, Jase. How you doing," she asked him while approaching his grabbed her wrist and pulled her close to him so he could place a crushing kiss on her mouth."Where you been? I thought you'd be waiting at the bedside for your boyfriend to wake up," Jason said.

"Boyfriend? What are you talking about" she asked."You're my girlfriend and that makes me your boyfriend," he said."OK. I'll be right back," she said, heading toward the door.

"Hurry back, sweetie," he went to find Jason's doctor. Something was definitely not right about the gold ranger.

"Dr. Allen, Jason thinks I'm his girlfriend," she said.

"You're not? He was insistent that you were and would want to be with him," the doctor said.

"I haven't been his girlfriend for two years. Does this mean something is wrong with Jason," Meredith asked.

"Well, if he's recalling events from the past, then he's suffering from memory loss. Apparently the blow to the head has caused him to remember the way things were, not the way they are," he said.

"Will he ever get back to normal," she asked."Most likely. The thing now is to remember not to shock him with too much information too soon. You may have to pretend to be Jason's girlfriend for a while, until he remembers," the doctor said.

Meredith nodded her head and watched the doctor walk away. She leaned back against the wall and looked up a the ceiling. She had no idea how this could turn out well. She wanted Jason to get better, but she didn't think she could pretend to be his girlfriend. She pushed off the wall and walked back to Jason's room.

"Hey, everything OK," he asked, taking her hand as she neared the bed. She tried not to pull away. The door opened to reveal her friends. At the same instant, Jason tugged Meredith back down to him and kissed her.

At the sight, Katherine and Rocky started yelling. "What the hell," Rocky said.

Meredith pulled away from Jason, obviously embarrassed."Rocky, can I talk to you in the hall for a second," she said, grabbing his hand before he could say anything. "Hurry back," Jason sat down on the bed with him and pushed his hair from off his forehead. She leaned down to give him a kiss, but he turned his head."What are you doing," he asked,"Kissing my boyfriend," she said.

"Are you sure you didn't get hit on the head? Meredith is my girlfriend, not you," he said.

Katherine jumped off the bed like she'd been shocked, tears forming in her eyes.

"What in the world is going on around here," she asked her friends.

"What the hell was that, Meri," Rocky asked. Meredith knew Rocky was angry and she'd never experienced his anger directed at her.

"Jason doesn't remember the last two years. He thinks he and I are still a couple. The doctor told me that telling him everything that he's forgotten would be really traumatic. I have to go along with this," she said.

"I don't like it. I don't like it at all, babe," he said.

"Jason's my friend. I can't do something I know is going to cause him pain," she said."What about what he did to you," he asked her.

"I can't hurt him back because he hurt me. Don't you understand? I don't want to be his girlfriend any more than you want me to be his girlfriend, but if he's going to get better, I have to do this," she said.

Rocky looked at his girlfriend. This was the girl he loved. He loved her more than anything, more than his own life. This was the girl he wanted to make his wife, but he couldn't wrap his head around what she was telling him she had to do. Despite everything they had been through, he couldn't stand by and watch it. He couldn't be complacent to it. He stared into her deep green eyes and knew he was going to have to give up everything they meant to each other.

"If you're telling me you're going to pretend to still be Jason's girlfriend, then we can't be together. I can't be your boyfriend knowing you have to pretend to still be in love with someone who hurt you. I can't do it," Rocky 's eyes widened. "You're breaking up with me? After everything we've been through? After everything we've been to each other? I can't believe you would disapprove of me helping a friend," she said.

"I have no problem with you being Jason's friend, but he's always going to have a hold over you. He was your first love. I know that. I know you love me and I love you, but I can't do this," he said.

Tears started down Meredith's cheeks and she looked down at the floor. When she looked back up, her eyes had gone cold. Rocky wished he could take everything back, but he knew he couldn't handle the 'relationship' between Meredith and Jason. He couldn't do it."Fine. Leave. Just go. I have nothing to say to you anymore," Meredith said. She turned and went back to Jason's room, leaving Rocky to walk out of the hospital, his heart hurting for breaking up with her, but knowing it had to be done.

Meredith saw everyone was standing outside the room. "What is going on, Meredith," Katherine asked."Jason doesn't remember the last two years. He thinks we're still together," she said, trying to hide her tears.

"So what does that mean," Tommy asked."The doctor said I should let Jason think his reality is what is real right now. Telling him the truth would be really traumatic right now and could cause him to never remember what happened," she said.

"So you have to pretend to be his girlfriend until when? When Jason remembers," Kimberly asked."What is Jason never remembers," Katherine asked."It's not forever. The doctor thinks he'll remember. If he doesn't start to remember in a few days or weeks, he should be strong enough to hear the truth. Everything will be back to normal in a few weeks," Meredith said, trying to get everyone to believe her words.

"How is Rocky taking this," Adam asked."Not well, considering he just broke up with me," she said.

"WHAT," Tommy practically yelled."Look, he broke up with me, but I'll handle it. Once everything is straightened out with Jason, we'll be back together," Meredith said, hoping she was right.

***Next installment: Alone. _Meredith sat on the bench in the park thinking how things got this way. She was alone, literally and figuratively. Something had happened with Tommy and Kimberly that caused Tommy to check out on Meredith emotionally, unable to be there for her. Rocky and she hadn't spoken except for the occasional discussion about school or a battle. They hadn't discussed their relationship at all. Jason had remembered he was with Katherine and Meredith was able to end her charade, but that hadn't caused Rocky to come back. Meredith was beginning to believe that loving him had been a lie._ The next installment will deal with Meredith and one after that will deal with Tommy and Kimberly. I'm thinking of posting them together. More bang for your buck.*** -mereditholiver


	23. Alone

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the character of Meredith and the ramblings within. Someone else with more money and imagination owns PR. I'm just borrowing them for a while.

ALONE

Meredith sat on the bench in the park thinking how things got this way. She was alone, literally and figuratively. Something had happened with Tommy and Kimberly that caused Tommy to check out on Meredith emotionally, unable to be there for her. Rocky and she hadn't spoken except for the occasional discussion about school or a battle. They hadn't discussed their relationship at all. Jason had remembered he was with Katherine and Meredith was able to end her charade, but that hadn't caused Rocky to come back. Meredith was beginning to believe that loving him had been a lie. She refused to believe that, though. She loved Rocky. She STILL loved him. Nothing he had done would change her mind about it. She knew she would have done the same thing had she been in his place.

Meredith was feeling a lot of things. The biggest at the moment was anger. She was angry. Actually, she was pissed. She couldn't believe that Jason had gotten his memory back a week after the accident, yet pretended to not remember for another two weeks. He claimed he'd done it because he still loved her, but Meredith thought it was cruel. She had seen the hope of reuniting with Rocky diminish with each passing day, leaving her feeling like she'd never get him back. Meredith could still feel the anger, still fresh after several days.

FLASHBACK

"Meri, thanks for helping me with this. I feel like I've lost so much time," Jason said. Meredith had merely nodded, thinking to herself that he had no idea what he was missing or making her miss.

She hadn't spoken to Rocky and it was torturing her. Tommy had said he had talked to him, but Rocky refused to have any conversations that remotely related to her.

Jason stared at his current/former girlfriend. He hated seeing her so distracted, so lost. He had recovered his memory a week after the accident, but enjoyed the feeling of having Meredith back that he had extended the period of amnesia so he could enjoy it more.

As much as he cared for her, loved her, he couldn't stand it any longer.

"Meri, I have to tell you something," he turned around and sat next to him on the couch."What's that, Jase," she said.

"I remember. You're with Rocky and I'm with Katherine and I'm the gold ranger now," he said.

Meredith's eyes went wide with shock. "That's wonderful. I'm sure Katherine is going to be happy that you remember her," Meredith said.

"You'll get your life back," Jason said."Yeah," Meredith said, sadness tingeing the words.

"Rocky will be happy to have you all to himself. I should thank him for letting me borrow you for a while," Jason said."You don't have to. Rocky and I broke up before you got out of the hospital," Meredith said, gathering up her books.

Feeling guilty for what had happened, Jason decided to come clean."Meri, listen. I've known everything for the last three weeks," he said.

Meredith dropped her books on couch and turned around to face him. The look on her face was one of disbelief, betrayal, hurt and anger."You've known for three weeks," she said, her voice going up an octave.

"Yes," Jason said."Why didn't you tell me or someone else then? Why let me pretend to be your girlfriend? Why let me ruin my relationship with Rocky? Why would you do this to me," she asked, yelling at him.

Jason shook his head. "I'm still in love with you."

Meredith's mouth hit the floor. She recovered and said, "You have a funny way of showing it. Allowing all this to happen to me. I LOVE ROCKY! I care about you as a friend and thought, before all this happened, that you and I could get our friendship back. We were starting to work on that after you were turned evil. I wanted that. Now, you've ruined what I had with Rocky. I know I probably should have let you figure things out on your own, but I thought I at least owed you to be there for you. Now I find out you were just using me to get what you wanted. News flash, Jase, the world doesn't revolve around you. I'm not Katherine. I don't love you like that. I don't think I ever did. You cheated on me and then I moved on with my life. Now I have nothing. Tommy's got something going on with him and Kimberly and I haven't been there for him. I don't know what's going on with him. Rocky won't talk to me, so I don't have him," she picked up her stuff and headed for the door. "You can't play with people like this. It's just wrong. I'm glad you're better. I would never have wanted anything to happen to you. Now, just leave me alone."

She had walked out of his house, slamming the door for effect.

Jason sat on his couch, feeling empty. He felt lower than any of the monsters he had fought in his career as a power ranger. He felt like an ass. He thought that spending the extra time together would help Meredith see how much he cared and how good they were together.

Hearing those words had hit him hard. He knew she cared about Rocky, but had no idea that their breakup had been THAT bad.

He picked himself up off the couch and called Katherine. She was elated to find out that he was back to his old self and remembered being with her. She promised she'd come over and reunite with him after nearly a month of being apart.

Meredith drove home and parked in her driveway. She couldn't believe what Jason had told her and she couldn't believe how he had ruined her relationship with Rocky. She thought she was doing him a favor, but she'd only succeeded in ruining her own life. She'd never felt so lost in her life. Tommy had checked out emotionally after a conversation with Kim. If he wasn't with Kim, he was in his room or working out. She couldn't bother him with her problems when he wouldn't even tell her his problem.

END FLASHBACK

She found herself sitting on the bench in the park, thinking about everything that had happened. She just didn't know what she was going to do. She didn't know how to carry on without hope. And that's what she was, hopeless. Rocky had been out on two dates during the time she was Jason's 'girlfriend' and Meredith knew it was a matter of time before he found someone to date. She knew she wouldn't be able to handle it. Every time she thought about it, she felt awful. She wanted to crawl into bed and never get out. She couldn't cope with someone else holding Rocky's hands or kissing him. She certainly couldn't imagine someone else in his bed; a place she wanted to belong to her and her alone. She started back to her house, mindful of the sky. She knew it was going to start to rain.

The fat rain drops starting coming down just as she reached her house. She unlocked the front door and set her stuff just inside the foyer. She slipped off her shoes and headed up to her room.

She entered the bathroom she shared with Tommy and closed his door. She opened the medicine cabinet and found the medication she'd been given for her wrist when she'd been in the accident.

Meredith had never given a thought to taking her own life, but it seemed infinitely better than dealing with this awful pain that consumed her heart.

She thought of calling Rocky and seeing if he was serious about any of those girls he'd been out with, but decided against it.

She opened the bottle of pills and grabbed her glass by the sink. She dumped several pills into her hand and swallowed them with the water.

Taking one last glimpse at herself, she went back to her room.

She sat at the desk and wrote a simple note: 'He lied to me; he checked out on me; he doesn't love me.'

She left the note on the dresser, took the pill bottle with her and laid down on her bed.

Tommy, sitting with Kimberly at her house, suddenly felt despair and hopelessness. He looked at Kimberly. "What's wrong," she jumped off the couch."Something's wrong with Meredith," Tommy said.

"What are you talking about," Kim asked."I'm getting the feeling that something is really wrong with her. I'm feeling lost. I've got to head home," he said.

He rushed to the door, almost catching Kimberly in it as she rushed out with him.

He jumped in his Jeep and peeled out of Kim's driveway. His goal was to get to Meredith. He had to get to Meredith.

Kimberly gripped the dashboard with white knuckles as Tommy screeched around another corner. They arrived at the Oliver house and Tommy slammed the Jeep into park without bothering to stop first. He leapt out and rushed to the front door. He tried to open it, but it was locked. Kimberly came up behind him with the keys he'd left in the ignition and he unlocked the door."Meri! Mer," he called as he headed upstairs. He reached the top and peeked into the guest bathroom. He went to her bedroom and found the door slightly ajar. He pushed it open and saw Meredith on the bed, still clutching the pills in her right hand. "KIMBERLY," he appeared in the doorway, "Oh my God, Meri."

"Call 9-1-1," Tommy said as Kimberly started dialing. Tommy barely heard what was being said, he just held his sister, praying everything would be alright.

Kimberly walked to Meredith's desk and found her note.

She heard the ambulance pull up in front of the house. Seconds later they were in the bedroom, attending to Meredith. Tommy told them he suspected she had a drug overdose, but he couldn't be sure.

He watched as they loaded Meredith onto a stretcher and rushed her down the stairs to the waiting ambulance.

He climbed in the back, sending Kimberly the unspoken request to take his Jeep to the hospital. The ambulance drove away, sirens blaring. Kimberly started Tommy's Jeep and drove after them. She figured she'd call everyone when she got to the hospital, but first she wanted to know about this note she'd found.

She arrived a few minutes after the ambulance. Tommy was already paging his father and mother, who were both working.

Tommy knew that, while he was having problems, nothing compared to what Meredith had been feeling. He was silently kicking himself for not checking on her. "She's going to be fine," Kimberly said."How can you be sure? She just tried to kill herself. She might have succeeded," he said. "Why?"

"I found this in her room," Kimberly said, giving him the note to read it and immediately the pain returned to his eyes. Meredith was blaming him for not being there and he couldn't fault her logic. He'd taken his sister for granted, assuming she'd always be there. He collapsed onto the nearest chair and put his head in his hands. Kimberly wrapped her arms around him while he cried.

When Tommy went with his parents to see Meredith, Kimberly went to the phone to call their friends. She told the girls, Aisha, Katherine and Tanya what happened. She phoned Billy, Zack and Adam who said they were on their way. She called Jason next

"Hey, Kimmy. What's up," he asked her.

"Jase, listen to me carefully. Meredith is in the hospital. It looks like she tried to commit suicide. Thought you'd want to know," Kim was silent for several seconds. Kimberly was concerned that he'd passed out until he said, "I'm on my way."

Kimberly said bye and then prepared to dial another number. She didn't know how he'd react, but she knew he needed to know."DeSantos residence," came the voice of Rocky's mom."Mrs. DeSantos. It's Kimberly. May I speak with Rocky," Kimberly asked."Of course, dear," she said. Kimberly heard her call Rocky to the phone.

"Kim? Mom said you wanted to talk to me," he said."Yeah. Here goes. Meredith tried to kill herself. Tommy and I are here with her at the ER. The rest of the crew is here. I just thought you might want to know," Kimberly said."What? Meri would never try to kill herself," Rocky said, trying to come up with answers that would prove it wasn't Meredith."Rocky, I was there when Tommy found her. She did it and she's unconscious. I'm assuming they'll admit her for observation," Kimberly said."I'm on my way," he said before hanging up the phone. Kim hung up the phone also and leaned her head against the phone. She couldn't believe what had happened. She and Tommy were dealing with something painful and now Tommy was also dealing with maybe losing his sister, his best friend. She hoped Meredith would pull through this because Kimberly knew that if he lost his sister, the Evil Green Ranger would be a tame version of Tommy.

Everyone poured into the waiting room, surrounding Kimberly. "Tommy's with her right now. Her parents are in there, too. She's going to the ICU where we'll be able to visit with her for a few minutes at a time," Kimberly said. Rocky looked at Kim. "Why did she do it," he asked, his voice heavy with emotion, his eyes red from crying."Here," she said, handing him the note she'd buried his face in his hands after reading the note. He knew he was part of the reason. He couldn't believe she'd done it because he didn't love her any longer. He loved Meredith with all his heart, but knew she was going to do this thing for Jason to make his chances of recovery better. He hated her for it but it was also one of the things he loved about her. He was determined to get back with her when she was aware enough to hear what he was saying.

Kimberly sat on the waiting room chairs. The other girls were gathered around her and wanted to know why Meredith had done it. "She said in her note that he lied, he wasn't there emotionally and he didn't love her any longer. I'm assuming that the didn't love me was directed at Rocky. I don't know about the other two," Kim said.

Tommy came out into the waiting area, his normally tall stature, slumped and beaten. He had witnessed the worst thing in his life. "We can take turns and see her. I'm going to spend the night in her room, so you don't have to worry about me. I'll probably sleep while you guys are with her. If she needs something, please call me," he reminded everyone.

"Does anyone know what she meant by this note," Tanya asked."He lied would probably refer to me," Jason said."Why," Rocky asked."Because I've had my memory back since a week after the accident. I pretended to still be helpless to have Meredith all to myself. I wanted to see if she would get back together with me. She read me the riot act when she found out. I deserved it. She said she never wanted to see me again," Jason entire room was staring at Jason in horror and disbelief.

"I am still in love with her, despite what has happened," Rocky spoke up, trying to take the pressure off of Jason for a bit. He was plenty angry at the former red ranger, but he was going to control his temper for now. If something happened to her, he wouldn't be able to forgive himself.

"Tommy and I are going through something pretty emotional. Tommy admitted he'd been taking her for granted. This is throwing him for a loop, that's for sure," Kimberly said Tommy came out into the waiting room again. "Who wants to go first," he looked at either Rocky or Jason."Rocco, you go. You're the one she wants to see anyway. She needs you," Jason said. Rocky sent him a grateful smile and followed Tommy into Meredith's hospital room.

***What's going to happen? Is Meredith going to pull through? This was a dark chapter and I didn't know it was going this way until the words appeared on the page. No preview of next chapter. It's going to be a surprise!*** -mereditholiver


	24. Tears

TEARS

Rocky stared at the girl in the bed. The bed held the girl he loved with his whole being, the one he had tried to move past. The girl that he had fought alongside and shared so many things. The girl he wanted for the rest of his life.

He watched Meredith's chest rise and fall with her even breathing. He found it comforting. The steady beeping of the heart monitor told him that she was stable. He didn't even want to think about what could have happened. He couldn't believe she had thought suicide was the way to go. He had no idea the amount of despair she had felt since they broke up. He felt entirely responsible for her actions. He should have fought harder, tried to understand or at least agreed to be there when the charade was finished. He hadn't counted on Jason changing the rules by pretending he still had amnesia. That alone made him want to find Jason and teach him a lesson. Judging by Tommy's face when Jason revealed his actions, Meredith's brother felt the same as him.

He took Meredith's hand in his, much like she had done for him a few months ago. He kissed the top of her hand and brushed the hair across her forehead. He laid his head on the pillow next to her.

"I love you, babe. I'm so sorry. I can't believe I nearly lost you. I am so sorry. I love you so much," he whispered.

He was vaguely aware of the tears that were coming down his face during his confession to Meredith. He didn't care. He had nearly lost her because he couldn't understand that she was trying to be a friend. He loved her and wasn't about to let her forget it when she woke up. He closed his eyes, keeping a strong grip on her hand.

Tommy watched Rocky take Meredith's hand. He saw his lips moving and Tommy figured Rocky was professing his love. He also knew Rocky felt guilty, just like Tommy did.

Tommy couldn't believe what Meredith had tried to do. She was always the emotionally strong one. She was the one that always thought with her head before her heart. He knew she had to be really hurting to do what she did and he knew he was partially responsible for what happened to her.

Meredith had been betrayed by her best friend, Jason; emotionally abandoned by her own brother and believed she wasn't loved by her soul mate, Rocky.

Tommy and Kimberly were going through something pretty emotional themselves, but that wasn't an excuse for him to partially abandon his sister. He was the one she was supposed to count on, no matter what. He was her twin and he knew her better than anyone. He saw Rocky place his head on Meredith's pillow and remembered doing the exact same thing shortly after she was taken to this room, before he'd brought Rocky in to see her.

Remembering brought fresh tears to his eyes._"Meri, what have you done? I'm so sorry I wasn't there. I'm so sorry you didn't think you could come to me. I wish I had known about what happened with Jason before now. I'm still shocked about it. I know you're upset about Rocky, but Meri, he loves you. You have to know that. We all love you. I've been a horrible brother and I'm so sorry for that. I'm going to make it up to you. I love you, Meri. You're my best friend and I need to know that you're going to be alright," he said._

_He kissed her forehead and put his head down on her pillow, closing his eyes and relishing in the quiet sound of her breathing._

Tommy wiped the stray tears from his eyes and lightly knocked on the door. Rocky raised his head and nodded at Rocky as he grabbed his sister's other hand and held it. "She should wake up pretty soon. The doctors told mom and dad that very little got absorbed into her system before she had the charcoal. She wasn't happy about that, but the doctor's fairly confident that she won't remember much about it," Tommy said.

"I just can't believe it got this far. I'm still unable to figure it out. I guess those two dates I went out on while she was helping Jason weren't the smartest things I ever did. I love her, bro. I really do. I just don't know if she'll believe me," he said."She will. I wasn't exactly there for her myself and I'm her brother. I knew something was bothering her, but I didn't think it was this serious. Once again I find myself able to control enormous power and zords, yet I'm totally powerless and clueless when it comes to figuring out feelings. I just hope that Meri can forgive me for what happened. I know I didn't give her the pills, but she wouldn't have done it if I'd been there for her," Tommy said.

"I hope she can forgive me," Rocky said.

Both men let silence take over the room as they both thought about what Meredith meant to them.

The nurse poked her head in and let Rocky know his 45 minutes were over. He kissed Meredith on the forehead again and let go of her hand.

"I'll see who wants to come back," Rocky said, patting Tommy on the shoulder. He gave one last glimpse back at Meredith and headed for the waiting room.

Jason was sitting alone in the corner of the waiting room.

Katherine had asked to speak to him outside where she'd promptly told him she didn't want to be with him if that was the way he treated people. She couldn't understand how Jason could behave that way.

"I would have done anything for you. I was terribly upset to find out that you didn't remember being my boyfriend. You only had eyes for Meredith. You treated the girl that considers you her best friend like she meant nothing to you. That's low, Jase. Really, really low. If that's how you treat someone you're supposed to care about, then maybe I don't want to be one of those people," she said before walking away toward the elevator. Jason hadn't tried to go after her. He knew what he'd done was wrong, but at the time he couldn't believe how Meredith was willing to sacrifice something she held dear to help him out. He thought that meant that she still cared about him.

After his confession he knew that wasn't true. He'd be lucky if Meredith would still speak to him. He knew Tommy and Rocky would never speak to him again.

His shoulders slumped and he put his head in his hands. He wept for everything he had lost; his relationship with Katherine, who he loved; his friendship with Meredith; friendships with Rocky and Tommy and his relationships with the rest of the team. His friendships with everyone had just been tested and he failed.

Kimberly had spent the last few weeks feeling depressed. She knew how Meredith felt, but Kimberly had Tommy. Kimberly had the one constant in Meredith's life and, now, Kim felt horrible for it. If she and Tommy hadn't been so self-absorbed, they might have seen just how upset Meredith was about playing her part in Jason's recovery. They would have seen how miserable she seemed when ever Rocky was around or when they heard about a date he'd had.

Meredith had been hurting and Kimberly had been oblivious to everything. She leaned back in the chair, her head resting on the wall. She let the silent tears fall, not caring about anything but her friend and the recovery.

Aisha and Tanya were both talking about what had happened with Meredith. They couldn't believe their friend, the one that always had it together, had tried to kill herself. The cousins had discussed Meredith's behavior and they both agreed she was obviously distraught about the break up with Rocky and she was uncomfortable about being Jason's 'girlfriend' until he got better.

Neither girl had been close to her during the last month because they knew she was still hurting from Rocky's breakup. They couldn't believe Jason and his pretending to have amnesia because he wanted Meredith to himself. Both girls felt that if Meredith had been betrayed by Jason and Tommy wasn't there for her and she couldn't count on Rocky, Meredith's foundation would crumble. Both girls vowed to be there for Meredith when this was over. They didn't know what to do about Jason, but they would deal with that problem later.

They both saw Rocky exit Meredith's room and head over to Kimberly. She nodded and went toward Meredith's room and Rocky slumped into the nearest seat. He closed his eyes and leaned back, the emotion taking its toll on him.

Zack had known Meredith for a long time and wouldn't have thought her the type to try suicide. Meredith was the voice of reason amongst their team. She was the one that kept Tommy from going off half-cocked and getting the whole team in trouble. Meredith was the one that everyone went to for advise because she was the least likely to tell you what you wanted to hear.

Zack remembered how Meredith had been there for him after his mom's accident. Meredith had even convinced her dad to take his mom on as a patient despite the two failed attempts by previous orthopedic surgeons to fix her shattered ankle. Not only did Dr. Oliver fix his mom's ankle, but she was nearly 100 percent back to normal. Something no one thought would ever happen. The little things she did made Zack glad that she was his friend and he hated that he didn't know she was in pain. He'd failed his friend and he wasn't going to let that happen again.

He closed his eyes against the tears that were threatening to fall from his eyes and sat down next to Aisha. He held her while she cried and Adam held Tanya. He didn't want to see the pain on Aisha's face ever again.

Adam hadn't known Meredith as long as Zack or Kimberly, but he considered her one of his closest friends. She was there for him during the aftermath of Trini's accident and he wanted to return the favor. He couldn't believe she had tried to kill herself. Meredith was a wonderful girl and he wanted to seriously hurt Jason for what he'd done to her. He was also contemplating some major pain for Rocky, but realized that might make Meredith more upset. He decided he was going to let everyone know how disgusted he was with their behavior and leave it at that.

He fought the tears that were building in his eyes and held Tanya while she cried. Adam tears slid noiselessly onto his sleeve.

Tommy stretched his legs in Meredith's hospital room. He'd been in this room, waiting for the last 12 hours. He watched the monitors display Meredith's vitals and then he felt her tug on his hand. He looked down and saw Meredith was trying to remove her hand from his larger one that had been placed over top of her tiny one.

Tommy quickly removed his hand and stared at his sister."Meri, can you hear me," he asked.

Meredith nodded her head. He leaned over the bed and gave her a crushing hug. He pushed the button for the nurse. He grabbed Meredith's hands and kissed them both, elated beyond belief that she was awake."I'm sorry, Tommy," Meredith said in a very weak voice."Sshh. It doesn't matter right now. Just wait for the nurse, OK," Tommy said, urging his sister to wait for her doctor.

The nurse rushed in with the doctor in tow. "I was about to do my rounds. Why don't you wait outside while I do her neuro check." the doctor said.

Tommy stepped out into the waiting room, but couldn't hide the smile on his face.

"She's awake," he said.

Everyone jumped to their feet and asked when they could all see her together.

The nurse came out and brought Tommy back to the room Meredith was in so he could hear what the doctor was telling his felt Meredith had turned the corner and she was going to be moved to another room where they could all stay, but only two of them could spend the night.

However, Meredith hadn't shared her reasoning behind her attempt. "Perhaps you or Rocky could get her to tell us more," Mrs. Oliver said."Do you think that's a good idea," Tommy asked."Meri will tell you things she'd never tell us. We just want to know how to help her," his mother said.

Tommy nodded and walked back to the waiting room."Rocky," he called.

Rocky stood next to Tommy, looking anxious

"They want me to talk to Meri. I thought maybe you would want to be there, too," Tommy nodded and followed Tommy back to Meredith's room.

The nurse left the room and Tommy's parents followed behind, watching from the window.

The guys took their places on opposite sides of each other, each taking Meredith's hand.

Meredith opened her eyes and saw the brown eyes of Rocky's filled with love and concern. He gave her a small smile.

"Hey, babe," he said, leaning toward her. "Babe? I'm still that," she asked, her voice hoarse.

"Of course. I was an idiot, but I didn't know how to tell you. I love you," he said.

"I didn't think you did," she said, tears forming in her eyes.

"Don't cry. I love you and you're going to come home," he spoke up. "Is that why you did it, Meri. Because Rocky didn't love you," he turned her head to face Tommy. She squeezed Rocky's hand.

"Jason lied to me. He only wanted me to stick around so we could get back together. He faked his amnesia for weeks. Do you know how much that hurt? To know that someone who was a friend to me for all those years could do that? I couldn't believe it had happened. I couldn't talk to you because you and Kimberly were so wrapped up in whatever you were dealing with that I couldn't bother you with my problem. I was supposed to figure it out for myself. I couldn't talk to Aisha and Tanya because I'm not as close to them as I am to Kimberly. I couldn't talk to her because of you. Katherine was out of the question for obvious reasons. I couldn't talk to Adam because he was Rocky's best friend and I didn't know if he could be impartial. Jason was part of the problem. I didn't think Rocky would talk to me, especially after he started dating again. So, I had to figure it all out on my own. I came up with I couldn't. You abandoned me, Tommy; Jason lied to me and Rocky wasn't in love with me any longer. I didn't have any idea what else to do. I felt so alone, Tommy. And I blame it all on Jason," she and Rocky had listened to Meredith with great interest. After hearing Meredith say she blamed everything on Jason, Rocky walked out of the room, before Tommy could stop him."Tommy, go get him," Meredith said.

Rocky marched into the waiting room with a purpose. He went over to Jason's chair and stood over him."Get up," he said, through clenched teeth."What's the matter, Rocky," Jason asked, standing in front of him.

"Meredith just said she blames everything on you. Did you even think about the consequences before you decided to be selfish? Did you even think about how it would affect my life? Tommy's life? Meredith's life? Did you bother to consider how it would affect Katherine? Get the hell out of here before Tommy goes all evil on your ass and before I make it necessary for YOU to be a patient in the emergency room," Rocky said.

Jason started to open his mouth, but seeing the anger on Rocky's face he stepped around him and headed for the elevator. He stopped and turned around.

"No matter what anyone might think, I never wanted to hurt Meredith. I loved her and I still care a great deal about her. I never thought Meri would do this. I didn't," he said and turned and entered the elevator. As the doors closed on Jason, he felt like his entire relationship with Meredith had ended.

Everyone stared at the empty place that Jason had just been standing before turning their attention to Rocky. His hands were still clenched in fists at his sides and his breathing was deep.

Kimberly went to Rocky and grabbed his arms.

"Why don't you go back to Meri. I'm sure she wants to see you," Kimberly said.

Rocky walked back into Meredith's room. Tommy had witnessed the exchange between Rocky and Jason, but hadn't stopped it. He told his sister that Rocky hadn't done anything to Jason.

"I'm not worried about him doing anything to Jason. I'm worried about something happening to Rocky," she returned to the room and resumed his spot next to Meredith.

Tommy allowed his mind to wander to the upcoming days when they would have to give up their ranger powers. After seeing everything that had happened in the last few years, he knew most everyone was looking forward to a new life outside the constraints of being a ranger.

His sister had said why she had tried to kill herself and he hoped that her friends could help her through it. He also knew he was going to have to tell everyone what he and Kimberly had been going though the last few weeks. He just hoped it wouldn't cause any more pain.

***Meri's on the way to recovery and Tommy and Kimberly are prepared to reveal what they had been going through. What has been going on with the original power couple? Will Meri and Rocky get back to where they were before the breakup? What will happen with Jason? Will his friends forgive him? Will Katherine?*** -mereditholiver


	25. Passing the Torch

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing except these ramblings and the character of Meredith. I've brought her out to play with the original characters. I do not own PR or anything that resembles them. I do have a DVR that I LOVE!

PASSING THE TORCH

"Can you really believe we're going to give up our powers," Kimberly asked her boyfriend, Tommy.

"No. But I do know that it's time for us to give them up. We've got a future to plan. I just hope we can remember how to live normal lives without the powers," Tommy said."The power will always be with us," Kimberly said, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"Yeah, but we won't have to go running to save the world anymore," Tommy said.

Kimberly pulled away and looked at her boyfriend. "How's Meri," she asked.

Meredith had been released from the hospital a week earlier with the promise that she would go to counseling and take medication for her previously undiagnosed Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, or OCD. The psychiatrist Meredith was seeing believed her main cause was the fact that she had to be perfect. Tommy had been concerned that he also had the problem, but the doctor assured him that it was a rarity for fraternal twins to share OCD.

The entire group had read up on the disorder and found certain times during their interactions with Meredith that she would slip into those patterns or behaviors that fit with OCD. Dr. Oliver had felt like a failure as a father and physician because he had missed the signs in his daughter. Their parents were dealing with the previously misdiagnosed condition and were working on ways to help Meredith. They, too, had discovered the patterns that now fit into the diagnosis.

Meredith was struggling with feeling like she'd let everyone down and learning how to handle her OCD. Her medication was working wonders and Meredith was back to her joyful self. Rocky and she had worked on their relationship while she was in the hospital and Rocky was once again Meredith's boyfriend.

"She's almost Meri again. She's still a bit withdrawn, but the doctor said it might just be the medication. She hasn't had any additional thoughts of killing herself and she and Rocky are back together, which is making her very happy. She understood when Zordon told her that the purple power was going to be placed in a special vortex. It can only be accessed by another sibling team like her and me. She helped Rocky pick his successor, so I think she feels like she contributed to the team," Tommy said as the two prepared to teleport to the power chamber to turn over their powers and resume life as normal teenagers. Just before hitting the button, Kimberly placed her hand on Tommy's arm.

He looked at his girlfriend."We have to tell everyone after this is finished. They have the right to know what happened. We should have told Meredith about it before all that happened. Maybe we could have all leaned on each other," Kimberly said."You're right. We're meeting at the park afterward and so we can tell them. We need to talk about it," he nodded and the two teleported.

They were met by Aisha, Adam, Rocky and Meredith. Jason's gold powers had been returned to Triforia, so Jason's presence at the meeting wasn't necessary and for that Tommy was grateful. Meredith had seen Jason once while she was in the hospital, but Tommy didn't know the outcome of that conversation. Rocky apparently did, so Tommy figured he'd find out about it later.

The actual passing of the powers didn't take long and right after they had handed their powers over, they were teleported out of the power chamber. They all looked back at the building that held so many memories for them all and started the walk to the park where they were meeting the rest of their friends.

"That was pretty cool to let Justin have your powers, Rocky," Tommy said."Yeah, he's like my little brother and I couldn't think of anyone better. Well, except for Zack or Billy, but they can't have them now," Rocky said, holding tightly to Meredith's hand.

"It feels kind of weird, knowing our communicators won't go off at any moment. We can actually go to the movies and see the whole thing through," Meredith said, smiling.

"That's true. But I am sad by the whole thing. I mean being a ranger was the biggest thing in our lives. It's going to be tough to replace that," Tommy said."Yeah, but we'll have more time to be with our other halves," Adam said."Huh. I wonder what 'other half' he's talking about," Aisha said causing the group to laugh and Adam to blush.

The entered the park and found their friends sitting at the picnic table. Jason was sitting at the table next to Katherine. They had made up and were dating again, but Katherine was being cautious. She loved Jason and, despite his recent behavior, she wanted to be with him. She only hoped he'd learned his avoided looking at Jason and sat next to Rocky. Kimberly and Tommy stood in front of the group and prepared to tell them what was going on with them.

"Six weeks ago Kimberly and I found out that she was pregnant. The shock of the situation hit us both very hard and we were unsure how to react. We had always been so careful and to realize we had a slip up was frightening to us. We weren't sure what we were going to do about the pregnancy, so we spent a lot of time together talking about it," Tommy said.

"We were preparing how we were going to tell our parents and were working on our plans for the future when I started having cramps. These were major cramps and scared me, so Tommy took me to the hospital. Since I was pregnant, they didn't have to call my parents and I was able to get treatment without anyone knowing. The doctor confirmed that I was pregnant, but I was going to lose the baby. The cramping had been the baby tearing away from the placenta. I miscarried the baby later that night. My mom was in France and his parents were away, so he was with me when it happened. The doctor told me what to look for and to get to the hospital if I saw any of the warning signs that could lead to infection and death. Luckily everything went smoothly," Kimberly said.

"Well, as smoothly as something that traumatic can go. We spent the rest of the week coping with the joy we'd felt and then the terrible sorrow we had for what happened. Meredith's incident forced us to realize that we needed to be more open with you guys about what was going on so we could have your support," Tommy looked at their friends. They knew they were supportive and had told them only to avoid keeping secrets from the group.

"Have you recovered," Meredith asked.

"Physically I was better four weeks ago, but I was an emotional wreck for a while. What happened with you, Meri, made me realize I had to keep the emotions in check. The doctor says I'm recovering well and, while I'll never get over it or forget, I'm coping and doing well despite what happened," she said.

"I'm just relieved that Kimberly is OK. I was upset for a while, but I held it together for her," Tommy said.

Kimberly wrapped her arms around Tommy and he returned the gesture.

Rocky squeezed Meredith's hand. It felt good to have someone there for her."Wow. That explains why you were distant, even from me. I'm sorry that my cry for help intruded on your grief," Meredith said."Meri, that's not true. We should have shared this with you guys sooner because we needed the support. We never told our parents and thought it was best to keep it a secret. We know that was wrong," Tommy said."Meri, you aren't responsible for what happened. What do you always say, 'the cosmos and the world shouldn't use us as their scapegoats.' That's what happened here. Apparently giving your entire teenage life to be a power ranger doesn't mean anything to the world," Rocky said.

"What are you guys going to do now," Aisha asked."College plans. We'll probably get married but we don't have to rush into anything now. It's kind of nice to know you have time to do things," Kimberly was silent. The admission by Tommy and Kimberly that they had, not only been pregnant, but had lost the baby weighed heavily on them. Meredith hugged both Tommy and Kimberly. She whispered in Tommy's ear. When they were finished, Tommy leaned into Kimberly and they sat on the bench, leaving Meredith standing alone. Rocky started to get up, but Meredith made a motion and he sat back down."What I did wasn't the smartest thing I've ever done. I know that. It was stupid, but I couldn't think of any way out. I felt like I had been abandoned. Jason lied to me and that was not something I was used to having happen. I thought Rocky didn't love me any longer. Tommy had emotionally checked out on me. I couldn't talk to him because he had walls up. I didn't know you were going through your own difficult stuff. I was afraid to go to Aisha or Tanya because I thought they might go to Kimberly or Tommy for advice and some of this was stuff I didn't want them to know about. I had known Zack forever, but you were like a brother. I knew I'd get the same reaction as Tommy. I couldn't talk to Katherine as much as I would have like to. Jason was out of the question. I was truly alone in the world at that moment. I had never been alone before. I had always had Tommy and I couldn't deal with him not being there," Meredith said.

She took a deep breath before continuing."I didn't know what I wanted to do, but I knew I couldn't live my life with this gaping hole in my heart. The piece that Rocky held had broken and the place for Tommy was empty. I know it was the wrong thing to do, but I wasn't thinking that way when I did it. I just wanted it to stop. I didn't know it would affect you all so much," she said, sitting back down next to Rocky, who'd taken up a place with Kimberly and Tommy.

No one said anything following the two big revelations by their former teammates.

Meredith got up and walked to Jason."Jase, I just want you to know that I'm working on forgiving you for what happened. I know how you didn't have any intention of hurting me and that this result probably blindsided you. I haven't gotten to that place yet where you can just waltz back into my life, but I will, soon. Just be patient," she said to gave her a small smile. "Whenever you're ready. I'm sorry and I'll be here," he said.

Meredith walked back to Rocky and kissed. The friends marveled that they were no longer rangers, they could enjoy cool vacations without them being interrupted.

The day had started with them giving up their powers, but ended with them finding the power of friendship. If any group was going to get over the loss of their powers quickly and move on with their lives, it was this team.

Zordon smiled on his 'children' before disappearing into the clouds again.

***I know this one was short, but I needed it in there so you could see what happened with Kim and Tommy. There will be more on that later, promise. In the next chapter, Meredith is going to have a talk with Tommy regarding her plans for the future. Is it something he agrees with or does it anger him? Will he support her no matter what his thoughts are on the matter?*** -mereditholiver


	26. Talking

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing except this rambling story that is now a quarter of the way finished. I own Mereith, but all other PR characters and plots belong to someone else.

TALKING

Meredith sat on the swing in her backyard. She heard the crickets chirping and saw the fireflies darting around in the night sky. She let out a sigh. Tomorrow, she would be joining her boyfriend Rocky and moving to Stone Canyon. Meredith was scheduled to start attending USC in preparation for her career in medicine and Rocky was finishing up the final touches on his dojo. He had purchased it six months ago and had been working with contactors to get it all set up so he could open in the fall before school started.

It had been four months since Meredith had attempted suicide and her doctor was happy with her progress. Meredith hadn't had any other thoughts of killing herself and had handled the upheaval of the rest of their high school days including graduation, without any problems. She was excited to get out into the world and start college. And, though she wouldn't admit it, she was ready to get away from Tommy's overprotective nature.

Meredith had outlined her plan with her parents a few weeks ago. She and Rocky had approached both of their parents with their plans to move into the small loft apartment over Rocky's dojo. They would remodel the fourth and fifth floor of the building for a much larger living space, but the small loft like apartment would be perfect for their needs for the next few years. Rocky was planning to do the remodeling work a little at a time while Meredith worked on her undergrad degree. Rocky had decided to go into architecture as a career. He'd spent a lot of time working with the people building his dojo and setting up the loft space that he found he really enjoyed it. He was going to pursue the degree part time while running the dojo.

Rocky's parents had been pleased with the thought of Rocky going to college, but were a bit apprehensive about him living with Meredith. The couple assured his parents that they were only doing it because it seemed practical. Plus Meredith was pursuing a degree in medicine and it seemed financially better for the two to live together so they could save money to get 's parents gave their blessing, but did voice their concern over the living arrangement. However, Rocky's mom said the couple would do it if they agreed with them or not, so they were going to support them so they would be able to see them and have a relationship with the couple.

Meredith's parents were a bit more open minded about the situation. Meredith discovered that her parents had lived together while her father attended medical school and her mother was finishing nursing school. When her mother graduated, they had married, she supporting them while he finished up his studies. They understood the practicality of the arrangement, but made sure the couple understood that they didn't like the idea. Meredith and Rocky had the support of her parents, so they felt good about the whole idea.

Luckily for Meredith, Tommy had been spending his time getting ready for his racing days. He was going to spend a few months racing with their uncle before joining Kimberly at UCLA. Meredith knew that Tommy was hoping Meredith would share an apartment with him and Jason and Adam. Jason was attending USC with Meredith and Adam. Adam had initially been wait-listed at USC, but received word that he'd been accepted just before graduation. Kimberly was attending UCLA as well, but since she was offered a position on the gymnastics team, she was required to live in the athletes dorms. Kimberly's elbow had healed and she could do the gymnastics, just not at the competitive level like the Olympics. Tommy's dad gave her the OK to compete with the UCLA team, but told her she had to limit her practices to a set number of hours a week. Kimberly promised to obey the rules and was excited to compete for the school.

Meredith knew that Tommy was hoping she'd be willing to share the apartment because, as much as he hated to admit it, he couldn't stand the thought of her not being right next had finished her packing, but had yet to tell Tommy about her plans. Tommy, Jason and Adam were supposed to go looking at off-campus apartments with Kimberly the next morning. Meredith was planning on moving with Rocky that morning. Meredith had told Tommy she needed to talk to him about that and he was supposed to meet her outside when he came home from his date with Kimberly.

Meredith was lost in a daydream when she heard the French doors open. Her brother sat on the swing with her and matched the gliding motion with his feet.

"What's on your mind, Meri," Tommy asked."I wanted to talk to you about our future plans," she said."OK," Tommy said, not fully understanding what she was saying.

"I'm moving tomorrow," she said."Huh? You're moving? To where? The dorms," he asked."No, I'm moving into an apartment above Rocky's dojo. I'm going to live with him until I start med school. We'll probably get married just before that happens," she said.

Tommy had stopped swinging. He felt like he'd been hit in the stomach. He'd just assumed that Meredith would be right by his side all the time that he hadn't bothered to ask her what her plans included.

"You're moving in with Rocky," he asked, his voice taking on a monotone.

"Yeah. He's planning to open his dojo when school starts and he had a small loft apartment put in on the third floor. He wants to use the fourth and fifth as a living space, eventually. He's going to work in the dojo and go to school part time. I'm really excited about moving in with him. I will be able to go to school and not worry about roommate drama," she stared at his sister. He didn't like what this would mean. His sister was going to move in with her boyfriend. He didn't like it one bit."I don't like it," he said."Why not? You think Rocky is a great guy. He's one of your best friends," she said."I don't like the idea of it," he said, staring straight ahead."How is living with Rocky any different than living with Jason and Adam," Meredith asked."Because I would be there. Besides each of them has their own girlfriends so I wouldn't have to worry about what you were doing," he said.

"That's ridiculous. You and Kimberly are going to be together all the time. You don't need me hanging around and you certainly don't want to be around Rocky and I all the time. And I don't think Katherine would like Jason's ex-girlfriend sleeping in the same apartment with him. Tanya would probably be cool with it, but poor Adam would be so embarrassed for a while. I couldn't do that to him. Besides, I have to learn how to get along without you being in the next room," she said."Why," he asked."Because we've always been together. That's the problem with twins. You're rarely separated. I won't be that far. I'm going to be living right in Stone Canyon and that's only a fifteen minute drive from the college," she said."Why are you telling me this? It's obvious you've already decided what you're going to do," he asked."I wanted to tell you because I wanted your blessing. I wanted you to know what I was doing and to support me," she said."Look, Meri, I'm always going to support your dreams, but I think this might be a bad idea. I can't believe you actually think that living with Rocky is going to help you," he said."I love Rocky. He's stood by me when I was dealing with the aftermath of my suicide attempt. I know I blamed him, but I never stopped loving him. I have to step out of my comfort zone. You know he's not going to let anything happen. The first sign that it's not working, I'll be right on your doorstep. OK," she said.

Tommy looked at his sister. If he knew one thing it was that Meredith would have considered all the arguments for and against and probably had an answer to everything he was about to say. "What did our parents say," Tommy asked. He was almost certain she didn't have the blessing of their parents and he was hoping he could use that to his advantage.

"Mom and dad gave their blessing. They lived together while mom finished nursing school and then got married and mom supported them while he finished his studies. They let us know they didn't like it, but they understood why we were doing it," she said.

Tommy was dumbstruck. He couldn't believe that Meredith's plan had the approval of their parents."What about Rocky's folks? They cool with it," he asked."Well, they said if they came out totally against it, we would do it anyway and they'd never see us. They said they'd feel better if we got married, but they also understand the prudence of the situation. Tommy, you're the only one that has said they didn't like it. Will you please support me? I want to know you'll come and visit me," she said.

Tommy was torn. He loved Meredith and wanted nothing more than to tell her that he was fine with it, but the protective nature of his relationship with his sister was causing him to resist.

"Meri, I'll support you, but I don't like you living with Rocky. I can't promise what I'll do when you move. I can't," he said before getting up off the swing and going inside.

Meredith sighed. She knew Tommy would probably go against everyone and try to talk her out of it, but the realization still hurt her.

She had accepted it and the only thing that was left was for her to go upstairs and get ready for the next step in her adult life.

She went inside and climbed the steps to her room, not surprised that Tommy had shut the door to his room.

Meredith awoke the next morning feeling like she hadn't slept at all. She knew the disagreement she'd had with Tommy was probably the reason and she hoped he'd change his mind before she left for good.

Rocky called at 9 to see if Meredith was ready for him to come and help her load her Jeep.

"Yeah. Ready as I'll ever be," she detected the sadness in her voice.

"Talk with Tommy not go well," he asked."Yeah, but he'll come around. If not today he will soon. He can't stay mad at me for very long," she said."That's very, very true. I said bye to my parents and siblings and I have the last of the stuff in the truck. I'll be over to meet you in fifteen minutes," he said."Works for me. See you then. Love you," she said."Love you, too, babe," he said before hanging up the carried the overnight bag that held the stuff she needed for the morning and went downstairs."Rocky call," her mom asked."Yes. He's on his way so I can follow him to the apartment," she said, grabbing an apple from the basket on the 's mom turned to look at her daughter. Jane Oliver had always thanked the Lord for bringing her not one, but two wonderful children to love. When she and her husband had found out they were unable to have children, she had been devastated. The opportunity to adopt a child arrived at the perfect time and they leapt at it. When the mother delivered twins and died shortly after childbirth, Jane had insisted that she be allowed to adopt both babies. Since the Oliver's were willing to take both babies, who would need supportive care in the NICU for several weeks, the adoption had gone through quickly. Jane was often amazed at how alike, yet different the twins were and how they were each other's best friend. She had hoped they would be close not just because they were twins, but because they were siblings. Meredith had never disappointed them. Meredith brought joy to her parents, despite the fact that Jane and her husband thought they had done something wrong when Meredith attempted suicide. Understanding and listening had helped heal, not only their daughter, but their family unit. Jane had never seen her son so scared as he was when Meredith was in the hospital. Jane also had a strong affection for Meredith's boyfriend, Rocky. Even though they had broken up over a misunderstanding, or something Jane wasn't sure, they had reunited after Meredith's hospital stay and seemed to be going strong. She wasn't entirely happy with Meredith's proposed living arrangement, but she went along with it because Meredith thought it was the best thing for her and Rocky did bring a smile to her face that Jane hadn't seen with anyone else. Not even Jason. Jane was concerned, however, with how Tommy was going to react to Meredith's leaving. He held his relationship with his sister in the highest regard and had never been separated from her for any length of time.

"Did you talk to Tommy," Jane asked her daughter."He's not happy, but I figure he'll get over it," she said."You and Tommy are extremely close. I can see how he might not want you to go, but you can't live your life trying to make Tommy happy. He's stubborn," she said, smiling."I know, mom, but he is my best friend and I hate if he's not happy with me," she said.

"Once he finds his own place with Jason, he'll realize how nice it is and how much he'll enjoy seeing you when you guys do get together. Besides, I think you'll have a couch at your place that Tommy will take over several days a week," Jane said."Especially if none of those guys has learned to cook. Thank goodness Rocky's mom made sure that he learned how. At least we'll both take turns cooking," Meredith said."You know Tommy's going to be over at your place for the free food," she said."I'll inherit Jason and Adam for my trouble, too," Meredith said, just as Rocky came through the back door."Hi, Mama Oliver," Rocky said, giving Meredith's mom a hug. He'd taken to calling her Mama Oliver because it was easier for everyone involved. Jane really enjoyed hearing another person calling her Mama.

"How's my unofficial son," she asked."Ready to start unpacking," he said."I'm going to say goodbye to Tommy," Meredith said, placing a hand on Rocky's arm as she walked past.

He nodded and talked with Jane about Meredith's parents paying a visit the following weekend.

Meredith knocked on Tommy's door. She heard him say 'come in,' so she went inside.

"Hey, bro. Rocky and I are heading to the apartment. Do you want to come and see it," Meredith asked."Later. I'm meeting Jason and Adam at Jason's house so we can find an apartment," Tommy said, searching through his drawers to find his socks."I put clean ones in the dresser by your bed," Meredith said, opening the drawer to reveal several pairs of clean socks. Tommy retrieved a pair from the drawer while grunting a thanks to his sister."Well, you're welcome to come by anytime. Mom has the number by the phone so you can call whenever. I'll call you tonight and find out how it went with the apartment hunting," she said, turning to leave the room."Meri," Tommy said, causing her to stop in the walked to his sister and wrapped her in a hug. "I love you, little bit," he said."I love you too, Forgetful," she walked down the stairs and met Rocky in the kitchen. Tommy walked down the stairs and carried Meredith's bag out to her Jeep. He stopped Rocky while they were alone. Meredith was saying goodbye to their mom."Rocko. I don't think this is a good idea, but I love Meri so I'm going to act like it doesn't bother me. Don't hurt her. I don't think I could handle that because I'd have to kill you and you are one of my closest friends. Just take care of my sister because I won't be able to watch out for her like I have been," Tommy said."I know. I love your sister, Tommy. I love her more than my own life. I would never hurt her for any reason. You have to know that I'm going to protect her and do what I can to make her happy. I'll protect your sister. I plan on having her around for the rest of our lives," Rocky held his hand out and Rocky shook came out of the house and gave one last hug to her brother before kissing Rocky and getting in her honked the horn as they pulled out of the driveway and Meredith headed toward her future. Tommy stood in the driveway feeling a small sense of loss. Meredith was gone from his everyday life, but she was still apart of his life. He knew it would take some adjusting but he was going to try to do it. For her.

***Tommy isn't happy with Meri's decision, but he's supporting her. Isn't that great! Next installment: Sorrow. _Tommy was lost. He knew that he still felt some sorrow over the loss of his child with Kimberly all those months ago, but he didn't know that Kimberly was still mourning like it was yesterday. Then to have her come into his room in the apartment he recently moved into with Jason and Adam and say she couldn't be with him after what happened, had left him stunned. What had he done and how could he fix it? He couldn't bring their child back, but could he do something to prove to Kimberly that he was there to help her move past it? Tommy stared at the phone._(Don't you hate teases like that?)***-mereditholiver


	27. Sorrow

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the writing included in this story and the character of Meredith. PR and all related items belong to someone else.

SORROW

Tommy put the last of his clothes in the dresser. He looked around the room. His mom had taken him shopping the day after Meredith moved out so he could have furniture for his bedroom. He had a simple black, wrought iron style King sized bed that he'd fitted with a dark red plaid comforter and a set of striped sheets. Kim had picked out the comforter set because, if left to Tommy, he wouldn't have matched anything. His desk and laptop with printer were sitting on the desk in against the wall, opposite the closet. His dresser with his TV sat against the wall opposite the bed. His various pictures and the few things from his childhood bedroom were around the room.

The red rug sat in the middle of the room. He shut off the light and walked down the small hallway to the living room.

The guys had been fortunate to find place that provided them with separate bathrooms and plenty of room.

The townhouse was two floors, with a basement. Tommy's room was on the first floor, while Jason and Adam had rooms upstairs. When their parents found out the guys were moving in together, they had all agreed to help furnish the boys' home. Each parent bought their son their bedroom furniture and then they all chipped in to purchase the living room, dining room, kitchen stuff and a small set up for guests that the guys put in the small office room on the second floor.

The guys had picked out a large sectional brown leather sofa and two leather recliners. They had a large entertainment center complete with a large TV, DVD and stereo system. They had a small bar style table that was their dining room seating.

The apartment was all hard wood floors, so the guys had purchased several rugs for the floors.

Tommy went out to the living room and turned on the TV. He was waiting for Meredith and Rocky to pay a visit. His roommates were in their rooms unpacking their belonging.

Jason put the last of his shirts in his dresser. His room was decorated in red and black. He really liked the apartment that he, Tommy and Adam had picked out. He headed out of his room and went down the stairs. He grabbed his jacket off the coat rack, said goodbye to Tommy and headed for his date with Katherine.

Adam had already left for his date with Tanya. It was her last night before she flew to New York to start school. Adam was sad she was leaving, but excited because she was going to follow her dream. He was planning to spend a fun day and evening with Tanya before she left.

Tommy flipped through the channels. He heard the knock on the door and jumped up to answer it. When he opened it, he wasn't expecting Kimberly to be standing there.

"Hey, Beautiful. I thought you had practice all day? Are you coming over to spend the day with me," he asked, taking her hand and pulling her into the apartment."No, Tommy. I have to talk to you," she said. It was then that Tommy realized she had been crying."Kim, what's wrong? Is it your elbow? Something else," he asked, immediately concerned for her well being.

"Today was my due date," she said, tears streaming down her face.

Tommy helped her to the couch."Oh, Kim. I didn't realize. Are you OK," he asked."No, I'm not. I thought I'd gotten past it and was ready to move on and concentrate on the future, but I can't. I was unpacking and I found the journal I was writing when I found out. I sat down and read it and I remembered how happy I was and how I couldn't wait to tell you. Then I read how happy you were and the plans we made," she said, her voice catching as she continued. "Then I read about the miscarriage. I was so devastated by that. I know you were, too. I thought that by us being together we could concentrate on the future and we would have another child later. But I don't want to have another child. I want the one that I lost. I should have done something. I should have been more careful," she said, tears falling at a fast pace.

"Kim, the doctor said it wasn't your fault. Sometimes these things don't work out. Remember he said that 20 percent of pregnancies end in miscarriage and nearly 50 percent of women will have one. You didn't do anything wrong. Please tell me you know that," he said, taking her hands.

"My head is telling me that, Tommy, but my heart doesn't agree. It's telling me I need to grieve more. So, I'm heading to Paris for a few months. I'm going to get in a semester of school over there and then decide if I'm going to come back and return to UCLA. The school is willing to hold my scholarship for a semester since gymnastics is next semester. I just think I should get away," she said. Tommy was stumped. He wasn't expecting what came out of Kim's mouth.

"What about us," he asked."I think we need to take a break while I'm in Paris. I love you, but I have to cope with this and seeing you everyday isn't helping me deal," she said. Tommy felt the wind get knocked out of him. He couldn't believe that Kim felt it was necessary for them to be apart because of what happened. He had always thought that they were better together and could cope with whatever was thrown at them as long as they were together.

Tommy was about to speak, but Kimberly cut him off. She kissed him, whispered "I love you," before rushing out the door.

Tommy barely registered the closing of the door. He couldn't think, see or feel. He was numb. Nothing mattered to him at that moment.

Tommy was lost. He knew that he still felt some sorrow over the loss of his child with Kimberly all those months ago, but he didn't know that Kimberly was still mourning like it was yesterday. Then to have her come into his apartment and say she couldn't be with him after what happened, had left him stunned. What had he done and how could he fix it? He couldn't bring their child back, but could he do something to prove to Kimberly that he was there to help her move past it? Tommy stared at the phone. He thought about calling his sister, but Meredith was on her way over to hang out, so he figured he'd talk to her when she got there.

He didn't have to wait too long. Meredith and Rocky knocked on his door fifteen minutes later. Meredith didn't waste any time. "What the hell just happened? Kimberly ran past me crying telling me she's moving to Paris for a semester. What did you do," Meredith asked as soon as she entered the apartment.

"Kim broke up with me because she couldn't handle the loss of the baby. She thought if we were apart and she was in Paris, she would feel better. That's crazy. She and I need to do this together," Tommy said.

"Do you understand the emotion that she's been going through the last few months. She's still trying to cope with not being pregnant. It's not as easy as saying, get over it. Her hormones are all over the place and she thinks that it's her fault," Meredith said, sitting on the couch.

"I told her it wasn't her fault. I reminded her of what the doctor said," he said."OH. Bad move," Rocky said."What are you talking about," Tommy asked.

"Don't quote anything to a woman. I learned that from your sister," Rocky said.

"Tommy, Kimberly knows the stats. She probably thinks it isn't her fault but she FEELS it is. I know you don't want to hear this, but maybe you two do need to be apart for her to heal. She'll realize she needs you in a few weeks and this will all be over," Meredith said. Tommy stared out the window. He didn't know how he was going to go on. He didn't understand what had happened to them.

"I know it has to hurt. Believe me, I know a little about how you feel. You have to be strong," Rocky said to Tommy.

"What am I going to do, Meri," he asked his just looked at him and shook her head sadly. She didn't have a clue to how to help him. She didn't know what would make it better. She did the only thing she could do at that moment. She hugged her brother. His silent tears dampening her sleeve. She looked at Rocky and closed her eyes. The loss of Kimberly was tragic for her brother and she didn't have a clue as to how to fix it. The three sat in the living room of Tommy's apartment. Meredith looked at Tommy. "So, you're going to give up that easily," she asked him. Both of the men in her life looked at her like she was crazy before they understood what Meredith was saying.

Kimberly sat at the airport. She remembered her conversation with Aisha.

"_You're leaving Tommy to head to Paris? Did you get kidnapped and brainwashed," Aisha asked her friend._

"_Sha, really. I look at Tommy and, while I'm happy with him, I start to feel guilty. I'm having fun just like I had never lost a baby. Just like I hadn't been pregnant. I look at Tommy and I can't get past feeling so happy to be with him when I shouldn't be. I lost our baby, Aisha. Do you know how much that hurts me to know I've done that to Tommy," Kimberly said, tears spilling down her cheeks."Kim, Tommy doesn't blame you for what happened. No one does. It was something tragic that happened and there isn't anything you could have done to prevent it. Kim, you shouldn't feel guilty for moving on with your life. That's how you move on. That's how you build your life. That's what you need to do and you need to do it with Tommy. You two are made for each other. You can't let him go like this. He's hurting from this, too," Aisha said."No, he's moved past it. He didn't even remember today was my due date if I hadn't said something. I'm going to go to Paris and see if I can move past this. Maybe when I come back, if Tommy is still single, we'll get back together. If we're meant to be, it will happen. Right now, I have to get away. The pregnancy, loss of the baby and Meredith's suicide attempt has been too much. I'll call you when I get to Paris. Tell Zack I love him. Bye," Kim said, before hanging up the phone. She had picked up her suitcases and headed for the taxi that was waiting down stairs. She had arrived at the airport an hour ago and was now waiting for her 6 pm flight to Paris. She didn't know if she was doing the right thing in the long run, but right now, it certainly felt like the right thing to do._

The call was made for her to board her flight and she started toward the gate. She looked behind her at the city she loved and took a shuddering breath before placing one foot in front of the other and walking toward the boarding line.

She was about to hand them her boarding pass when she heard her name."Kimberly! KIMBERLY," she heard.

She stepped out of the line and turned toward the voice.

Standing there in his jeans and her favorite green and white top, was Tommy.

"Kim, please, don't leave. I want to be with you. Please, tell me how I can help. I don't want to lose you," he said. Kimberly stared at Tommy. She saw his eyes glisten with the tears he wasn't willing to shed. She wanted to run to his arms and let him help her.

She dropped her carry-on and rushed to his arms.

"Kim, I feel just a badly about what happened. Please, let's move on together. I can't face not having you in my life," he said, as he held her close.

"You're right, Tommy. We need to be together," she said.

Tommy grabbed her luggage and they left the airport together. When they got outside, there was Meredith and Rocky in his SUV, waiting.

As Tommy and Kimberly headed toward the car, Rocky leaned over to Meredith. "How did you know it would work," he asked."Because I know it would work on me if you did it," she said, kissing Rocky. Tommy loaded Kim's luggage into the back of the SUV and jumped in the backseat with her. Rocky pulled away from the curb, ready to take the couple back to Tommy's place.

***Real life is going to hit the group. _They believed giving up their powers would give them more time with their families and in their relationships. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case for many of the former rangers. Meredith was busy trying to finish her undergraduate degree quickly. Rocky, since Meredith was always busy studying, spent his time studying his architecture books and teaching classes at the dojo. Adam wasn't seeing Tanya daily, so he spent his time with his nose in his books. The group was seeing their time diminish and they were trying very hard to keep it together.*** -mereditholiver_


	28. No Time

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but this story and the character of Meredith. Everything else belongs to someone with more money and imagination than myself. Enjoy!

NO TIME

They believed giving up their powers would give them more time with their families and in their relationships. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case for many of the former rangers.

Meredith was busy trying to finish her undergraduate degree quickly. Rocky, since Meredith was always busy studying, spent his time studying his architecture books and teaching classes at the dojo.

Adam wasn't seeing Tanya daily, so he spent his time with his nose in his books.

The group was seeing their time diminish and they were trying very hard to keep it together.

Jason was the only one that was grateful for what ever time he got with Katherine.

Shortly after he made a total ass out of himself with Meredith, he'd done a lot of thinking. Katherine had left him and was throwing herself into her dancing. Jason was lost. He didn't have a relationship with any of his close friends anymore because of his actions.

He was ready to move away and skip college for a year when Meredith had shown up at his house. Remembering that day made him smile and cry because it showed just how great Meredith really was and how she was willing to forgive, for his sake.

_Jason had spent another day working out in his basement. Luckily his parents hadn't noticed the lack of friends at the house and the absence of Meredith. He'd told them what had happened, but he'd neglected to keep his part in it out of any conversations._

_Jason had kicked himself several thousand times over the way he handled what had happened. He knew if he'd been honest with Meredith from the beginning, things would have been drastically different._

_He was on his way upstairs to shower, when the doorbell rang. He draped the towel around his neck and walked to the door. He peeked through one of the windows beside the door and was shocked to see Meredith standing there. He quickly unlocked the door and opened it for her."Hey, Jase. Mind if I come in," she asked._

_Still shocked, Jason could only nod and open the storm door to allow Meredith inside._

"_I'm the last person you'd expect to come see you," she his voice, Jason answered, "Yeah, but I didn't think you'd ever want to see me again."Meredith entered the Scott home. A place she'd spent a lot of time with Jason during their relationship._

"_Well, I wanted to talk to you. I had to sneak away from Tommy and Rocky while they were sparring. They're being a bit over protective of me lately," she said, sitting on the couch in the living room. _

"_You sneaking away? That doesn't sound like you," he said, trying to lighten the moment._

"_Well, this was important," she said to sat down on the chair opposite Meredith and waited to see what she wanted to see him about._

"_I wanted to talk to you about what happened with me," she said."You don't have to say anything. I understand that my lies didn't help your situation," Jason said, dreading what she was going to say._

"_No they didn't, but it's not right for everyone to blame you. It's not your fault. I mean, it is your fault that you lied and pretended, but you didn't give me the pills anymore than Tommy or Rocky did. All those events happened together and I caved. You didn't tell me to do it. I made that decision. I realize now, that was the wrong decision to make," she said._

_Jason stared at Meredith. She took a deep breath and continued._

"_You were someone I considered my best friend. We could talk about anything and I knew I could count on you, despite what happened between us in the past. We were getting our friendship back. Then this happened. I wasn't hurt so much by what you did as I was that you actually did it. I had always thought you above all that. I thought you would have been honest with me about everything. I guess having that trust broken and Rocky leaving and Tommy being gone, just hit me at the wrong time. So, because I want to get my life back and put this episode behind me, I'm going to forgive you. We've got a long way to go to rebuild that friendship, but I think we'll do it," Meredith was shocked. He couldn't believe what had just happened and he didn't know what to say. Meredith, who could always sense when he couldn't speak, just stood up and walked to the front door."Call Katherine. She might have decided to give you another chance since I've decided to give you one. She loves you, Jase and you need that. See you later," she said before exiting the house. Jason heard the soft click of the door knob and ran to his phone. He dialed Katherine's number and was elated to hear the lilt of Katherine's accent when she answered."It's Jason," he said."Hi. What can I do for you," she asked."Meredith just left. She told me to call you. She's decided to give me another chance at friendship and she said you might be willing to give me another chance as well," he said, his heart beat pounding in his ears."Meredith forgave you," Katherine asked."She did. She and I are going to work on our friendship, but I want to know how I can repair what I've done to you," he said."Well, if Meredith's willing to forgive you, then I guess letting you take me out for dinner to talk about what happened would be a good start," she said."Awesome. I'll pick you up in an hour. Is that OK," he asked, running up the stairs with the cordless phone."That's fine with me. I'll be waiting," she said before they hung up._

Jason and Katherine had a wonderful 'getting to know you' date and had continued at a slow pace for the next several weeks.

By the time he'd moved into the apartment with Adam and Tommy, he and Katherine were back together. She was involved in an intense dancing program, so he had limited time with her, but he was glad whenever he got to see her.

Tommy was waiting. Kimberly had a late class on Tuesdays and he always met her after class to walk her home since it was late. They had both been so busy with studying that they barely saw each other. Granted, Kimberly was usually at his apartment, they were both reading or writing most of the time. Their alone time was alarmingly short.

Tommy had been wishing he had more time to spend with her. He felt that, while their time was usually interrupted when they were rangers, they spent more time together. At least then they fought side by side during the battles. Now, if they weren't in class, they were studying. Kimberly was on the nursing tract and Tommy was still deciding so he was in the general science department. They did take a few classes together, but they still had limited time. Weekends were usually spent with family. When they did spend time together they usually watched movies or something, too tired to go out or do anything more than hang out.

One night, Tommy sat Kimberly down. "Kim, we have to make time for each other," he said."We're together all the time when we're not in class," Kimberly said."Yes, but we don't spend time together just talking or hanging out. We have to make sure we make time for us," he said.

"I know, but what are we going to do," she asked."Well, you have that late class Tuesday nights, so I'm going to have dinner with Meri that night and then pick you up after the class. That way, we don't have to rush over to Meri's over the weekend because I haven't seen my sister. Then we have all that extra time to ourselves. We can go out, stay in or whatever, but we are having a date night," he smiled at him. "That is the best idea you've had in a long time, Oliver," she said, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him."Glad you like it. This is the best idea you've had all day," he said, kissing her back.

Kimberly pushed the books off the bed and fell back on top of Tommy. They kissed and forgot all about their homework for a couple of hours.

Meredith walked up the steps to her apartment she shared with Rocky. She had been accepted into an accelerated undergrad program so she could enter medical school faster, but she was exhausted. She was cramming four years of study into two and a half and she was wiped out.

She opened the door to the apartment, not surprised it was unlocked. When they were home and not sleeping or busy, they usually just left the door unlocked, since the entrance to the stairwell was locked and inside the dojo.

Meredith slipped off her shoes and dropped her bag on the bench. It was Friday and, if she had anything to say about it, she wasn't doing anything until Sunday evening. She'd been studying too much and was getting headaches from the lack of sleep. She also missed Rocky. He was putting in a lot of hours at the dojo since it was their main source of income, but he was also taking classes to pursue a degree in architecture.

Meredith couldn't remember the last time they had actually talked about something that wasn't household related, business related or school related. She left notes for Rocky when she left while he was still sleeping or teaching and he did the same for her. But Meredith knew they could exist of notes for the next six years. She was scared that they were going to drift apart, so she was determined to spend the weekend with him. She had checked with Adam and Jason and they said they would take over Rocky's classes. She'd met up with Tommy while dropping Adam off at the apartment and told him she wanted to reschedule their Sunday night dinner date. Tommy didn't protest and instead suggested meeting before he picked Kimberly up on Tuesdays. This worked out perfectly for Meredith because Rocky taught a self-defense class that evening and she usually ate alone and did her homework. Meeting Tommy for dinner that night would be so much better.

Meredith walked into the living room. The loft was an airy space that the couple enjoyed. The large windows allowed a lot of natural light into the apartment. The main floor was divided up by the living room, kitchen and dining room. The living room took up most of the space with the kitchen occupying a quarter of the space. The counter offered the separation of the two spaces. Meredith could walk from the front door, through the kitchen into the dining room. Their small office occupied a corner of the living room. Their living room furniture was tan which kept the room bright. Their entertainment center was mounted on the wall in front of the couch.

The stairs to the bedroom was near the front door. The bedroom and bathroom area was upstairs and sat above the kitchen, dining room and some of the living room. There was a small half-bath downstairs by the front door and the bathroom upstairs was just above that one. The bedroom was open and the bed sat just below the wall that made the separation of the bedroom from the downstairs. It took a bit of getting used to for Meredith because of the open design, but she was starting to really like it. There wasn't a lot to clean. Rocky had designed the space to be as nice as possible but also staying within his small budget. Meredith's parents had purchased the bedroom furniture for the couple and his parents had gotten the living room suite. Rocky and Meredith purchased the small dining room set to have when their parents came over for dinner.

Meredith put her stuff on the bench behind the stairs and walked into the living room. The lights were off in the apartment and she thought Rocky was still downstairs.

"Rocky," she called.

She entered the living room and saw the first of several candles around the room."Rocky," she called again. She rounded the corner and entered the dining room and found Rocky.

There was a dozen roses in a vase in the center of the dining room table. Candles were flickering on the table. Fancy china was on the dining room table along with a bottle of champagne. Rocky was standing at the head of the table in his tux.

"Rocky, what are you doing," she came to her and took her hand. He didn't say a thing to her. He pulled out her chair.

He sat in the chair next to her and lifted the cover off of her dish to reveal steak, steamed broccoli and garlic mashed potatoes.

"I made dinner," he said, pouring her a glass of champagne.

"You certainly did. What did I do to deserve this," she asked."Being you," he said, shooting her a smile that still made her weak.

They dined on their dinner and had small talk about their friends and family before Rocky took the empty plates away and brought out dessert.

He placed the strawberry shortcake, Meredith's personal favorite, in front of her. He stood next to her as she started to put the fork into the tasty treat. She noticed it then. Sitting on top of the strawberries was a ring. A diamond ring. Meredith's fork hit the china plate with a clatter and her chair hit the floor as she jumped up.

She looked at her boyfriend. "Rocky," she said in a near took the ring off the strawberries and, making sure it hadn't gotten dirty, got down on his knee and grabbed Meredith's hand.

"Meredith Summer Oliver, I love you. There is no one else in the world for me. You're it. You've always been it. I know we've been apart a lot recently because of school, but I want you to know that, while it does suck, I know we'll be together forever. Will you make me the happiest guy in the entire world by agreeing to become Meredith DeSantos?"

Meredith didn't even need to think. "Yes, yes, yes," she practically slipped the ring on her finger and jumped up. He wrapped her in his arms and kissed her. Soon they arrived in their bedroom to celebrate their engagement and enjoy their weekend together. They took the phone off the hook and spent the entire time in their apartment. They stuck a note on the door at the bottom of the stairs in the dojo requesting privacy for studying. No one bothered them for the entire weekend until Tommy came over for dinner Sunday night. They had decided not to reveal their surprise for several weeks. They wanted to enjoy the fact that they shared something no one else knew about at that time.

Meredith was so busy with school that she never saw anyone for any length of time for them to notice her engagement ring. She smiled every time she looked at it, remembering that night with Rocky. She put her books into her bag and wondered what the rest of her friends were up to at this time. Winter break was quickly approaching and she couldn't wait to spend Christmas with her family and friends. Zack and Aisha were coming to town and were staying at Tommy's. Tanya was also coming into town and she was staying with Katherine in her small apartment she had recently rented after landing a part with the Los Angeles Ballet Company. She was attending UCLA to study dance and needed a place to stay since it was the middle of the semester. The gang planned to gather at Rocky's dojo for a party to celebrate the holiday. Meredith couldn't wait. She had nearly a month off and intended to spend it with Rocky planning the wedding.

***Holidays with the former rangers. Wonder what will happen. Here's a sneak peek to Mistletoe: _All their friends were in the same room with each other for the first time in nearly six months. They even had new friends that had taken their places as rangers. Zack, who was working on his own record label, had provided the name of a DJ for the party. Their old friend Ernie had catered the entire affair and was currently sitting on one of the couches Rocky had moved into the dojo studio for the guests to sit talking with Justin Stewart. Meredith had hung mistletoe in the various doorways of the dojo and some above some of the seats around the small bar that Rocky usually had stocked with beverages for his dojo. Tonight it was the bar that allowed the bartenders, Bulk and Skull, to serve the guests. Several times she had been caught under the mistletoe by Rocky and once Meredith had caught Adam.*** _-mereditholiver


	29. Mistletoe

DISCLAIMER: I own the original writing and all other original characters, like Meredith. All others belong to PR which I do not own.

MISTLETOE

All their friends were in the same room with each other for the first time in nearly six months. They even had new friends that had taken their places as rangers. Zack, who was working on his own record label, had provided the name of a DJ for the party. Their old friend Ernie had catered the entire affair and was currently sitting on one of the couches Rocky had moved into the dojo studio for the guests to sit and talking with Justin Stewart. Meredith had hung mistletoe in the various doorways of the dojo and some above some of the seats around the small bar that Rocky usually had stocked with beverages for his dojo. Tonight it was the bar that allowed the bartenders, Bulk and Skull, to serve the guests. Several times she had been caught under the mistletoe by Rocky and once Meredith had caught Adam.

"Nothing to be embarrassed about," she said, smiling. She and Adam shared a quick peck. Rocky caught the exchange and slid over to his best friend and fiancée. "You stealing my woman, Park," Rocky asked, elbowing Adam.

Adam played along. "If she'd only have me. Meri, you're prince is waiting for you," he said, laughed at the guys. "Oh, Adam," she said, feigning a swoon.

Rocky wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. It was a kiss that earned them a lot of catcalls from their friends and even a 'Cut it out,' from Tommy.

"Well, now that we have everyone's attention, I have an announcement," Rocky said.

Everyone turned to face Rocky and see exactly what he was going to tell them.

"A few months ago, Meri and I were enjoying some rare time alone when we decided on our future. Meredith and I are getting married," Rocky said as Meredith showed everyone her engagement ring.

Tommy and Kimberly rushed up to the couple.

"You neglected to give me this little bit of information," Tommy said."We were waiting until everyone was together. We'll tell our parents tomorrow at dinner," Meredith said.

"So when do we get to do the planning," Kimberly asked. Both gave the couple hugs before Zack and Aisha approached them."I hate to do this to you two, but WE have an announcement to make," Zack said."What's that," Meredith asked.

"Well, we don't want to outshine you both, but Zack and I got married last month when we went back to Angel Grove to see our parents," Aisha said.

The room was totally silent for a few seconds and then Kimberly started screeching and rushed Aisha, practically knocking her down. Meredith was in shock, but she, too, rushed the newlywed and offered her a hug.

Tommy, Rocky and Jason offered handshakes and congratulations to Zack.

"So how did that happen," Adam asked after hugging Aisha and shaking Zack's hand."Well, I proposed to Aisha at her birthday which is about two months before Thanksgiving. She, like Meredith, wanted it to be a secret. Well, when she called her mom to tell her, she was overwhelmed by the amount of work that she was going to have to do," Zack said."School is stressful enough and the last thing I wanted to do was hate my wedding because I was going to be super busy with school and whatnot that I wouldn't enjoy planning it. When I mentioned it to my mom she asked me if I could find a dress. When I said sure, she told me she'd handle it and we could get married at Thanksgiving. My uncle is a minister," Aisha said."So, she went shopping and found her wedding dress and her mom did the planning. We decided that if her mom could do a small ceremony that Aisha was going to like, then we would do it during the holiday. We know you guys would want to be there, but we had this opportunity and took it," Zack said."Mom arranged for us to have the small chapel at the botanical gardens and my uncle married us with just our parents and Zack's sister in attendance. Mom made us promise we'd have a bigger wedding this summer, so we will and you will all be a part of it. Plus my grandmother got to see me married before she died," Aisha said, tearing up. Zack wrapped his arm around his wife and continued, "We didn't want you guys to be mad at us, but it was important, too, that Aisha grandmother got to see her get married. Aisha's wearing her wedding ring that her grandmother gave her when she found out we were getting married during Thanksgiving. We had picked out our own, but Aisha insisted that she use her grandmothers."

The group had been silent during their speech and Tommy was the first to speak. "Well, I'm glad you guys got to do it your way. Without anyone telling you what to do. When you're ready for us to join you, we'll be right there celebrating.""Yeah, I'm supposed to be your bridesmaid," Kimberly said.

"Did you know about this Tanya," Adam asked."No. I was told there was going to be a celebration at Thanksgiving, but you know I didn't make it home. That's why you flew out to see me," she said.

"Well, that's big news. I always thought Tommy and Kimberly would get married first," Meredith said.

"Me, too, but Tommy has to propose first," Kimberly said.

Tommy shot his sister and girlfriend a look.

Tommy was going to propose but he wanted their relationship to be on a surer footing before he did. He knew she was still hurting, despite her assurances that she wasn't.

The rest of the evening was spent talking and dancing with old friends. Meredith danced with Jason and the two talked about old times. Meredith told Jason she'd forgiven him and was ready to move forward in their friendship."I still think what you did was pretty shitty, but I think we need to be friends. I miss having someone I can talk to that isn't my boyfriend or brother. I love confiding in them, but they give me advice that benefits them or that they think I want to here. So, here's to our new foundation of friendship. Besides, Rocky needs some help with the dojo. This thing is really taking off," Meredith said.

"Thanks, Meri. I don't deserve it, but I'm glad that we're moving forward. I have missed you," he song ended and the two shared a hug before going back to their respective dates.

"Things cool with Jason," Rocky asked as he kissed Meredith."Fine. I'm glad that he's a friend again," she said. Rocky wrapped Meredith in a hug and looked around the room at all their friends.

The night finished early the following morning. Zack and Aisha slept in the foldout sofa in Meredith and Rocky's living room. Tommy and Kimberly went back to his place along with Adam and Tanya. Jason and Katherine went to her apartment.

Meredith awoke early the next morning and set about making breakfast for their guests. The group was traveling back to Angel Grove that afternoon to spend Christmas with their families. Meredith, Rocky, Tommy and Kimberly were heading to their hometown together. Meredith and Tommy were spending Christmas with their parents and Rocky was with his parents. Kimberly was hanging out with Tommy since her mom couldn't come home from Paris. Meredith would head to Rocky's parents Christmas Eve and they planned to tell everyone then that they were getting married.

Zack and Aisha showered quickly while Rocky helped Meredith prepare breakfast. While everyone sat down to eat, Meredith ran upstairs to shower.

When she returned, the dishes were done and everyone was ready to head out. Zack and Aisha left first, since Meredith and Rocky were waiting for Tommy and Kimberly.

When they arrived, they loaded their luggage into Rocky's SUV. Tommy and Kimberly got in the back and they headed off for Angel Grove.

Two hours later, they pulled up in front of the Oliver house. Rocky noticed his parents car was in the driveway and was immediately out of the car. When the quartet entered the house, they were greeted by the Oliver's and DeSantos'. "Mama, what are you guys doing here," Rocky asked, giving his mother a hug and shaking his dad's hand.

"We knew you had to drop off the Oliver's and Kimberly, so we decided to come and see you when you got into town," Rocky's mom embraced her parents before turning to Rocky's parents and giving them a hug.

She returned to Rocky's side. "It's perfect that you all are here. We have something we want to share with you," Meredith said."Mami and Papi, Mom and Dad, I asked Meredith to marry me and she said yes," Rocky said. Smiles broke out on every parent's face at the news."We've been expecting this," Rocky's dad said."Really," Rocky asked his parents."Yes and we're fine with it," Jane Oliver said.

The rest of the holiday was spent spending time with both families. Rocky and Meredith put off questions about an actual date and Tommy avoided questions about his actual major. It seemed like the perfect holiday.

Adam and Tanya arrived at his house for dinner with his parents. He was a bit nervous because he really liked Tanya.

When they were all seated for dinner, the thing Adam feared the most, came true."Adam, my child, will you explain why you are not dating an Asian woman? They would certainly understand the culture and tradition that you were raised into," his grandmother said."Grandma, I know you mean well, but I love Tanya and I'm glad she's in my life. She helped me move on after Trini died. So, please, support my decision to be with her," he said. Tanya had been staring down at her plate while his grandmother was speaking. Adam knew it hurt her to have his grandmother saying those horrible things to about her.

"Just know, if you decide to marry her, I will not support the marriage," she said before leaving the table, her food untouched.

The rest of Adam's family stared at him. "Do you all feel this way," he asked."What do you think? We've loved and taught you for years and you thank us by dating a non-Asian girl; a girl who's unworthy," his uncle said.

Adam dropped his fork on the plate with a clatter. He pushed the chair out and threw the napkin across the table. He approached Tanya and held out his hand. Without giving a glance back, he walked out the door to his car.

"Um, exactly where are we going to sleep tonight," Tanya asked."A motel not too far from here," he said. After the two checked in, he called Meredith. They asked if they could join them for the dinner.

"Of course. The more the merrier, you know that," she said.

Adam and Tanya headed to the Oliver's.

As they walked inside the warm and inviting home, they were caught under the mistletoe. As Adam and Tanya shared a kiss, Adam knew that, despite the empty place his family not being around would leave, Tanya filled him with love.

***I know, his parent are awful. I experienced this myself with a guy and was hurt by they way they acted. Next chapter will jump a few years into the future when Meredith and Rocky get married, but something has broken up Kimberly and Tommy, again. What that is will be revealed in the next few chapters.*** -mereditholiver


	30. Wedding

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the character of Meredith and the words contained in this writing. I apoolgize for not updating sooner. Despite these things have been written well in advance, I need to make sure everything worked.

WEDDING

"I can't do it. I'm coming to the wedding, but I can't walk down the aisle after the ceremony with Tommy. It'd be too weird," Kimberly said to her best friend, Meredith. "Please! You promised you'd be my maid of honor when I got married," Meredith reminded her.

"I know and I also assumed Tommy and I would still be together. I was wrong about that, so I can't stand up for you at your wedding," Kim said."Kimmy, you're going to be my maid of honor or I'm not marrying Rocky," Meredith said. Kimberly laughed. "That's such a lie. You've been dying to marry that boy since high school. There is no way in hell you're going to let me ruin that for you. You'd get married with or without me and you know it," Kimberly pointed out."Fine, but you're going to by my maid of honor. I expect you to keep the appointment with the seamstress. If I found out you missed it, I'll personally send every former female ranger after you," Meredith said."Fine. I'll be in your wedding, but I'm not going to talk to Tommy. He really hurt me, Meri," Kimberly said, her eyes filling with tears.

"I know, but come to the wedding, do your speech and leave. You don't have to have any more contact with Tommy than is absolutely necessary. I promise," Meredith looked at her best friend. Despite the trauma Meredith's brother had caused in Kimberly's life, she was still willing to help Meredith. She was her best friend.

"Fine, but see if you can convince Rocky to make Adam his best man," Kimberly said, laughing through the tears.

"You know that's not going to happen. Tanya's due any day now and the last thing that Adam wants to do is stand up for Rocky during his big moment and have to dash off because of the baby. I do NOT want to deliver a baby at my own wedding," Meredith said. Meredith had recently graduated medical school and was starting her residency in orthopedics.

"You're a bone doctor like your dad. What do you know about delivering babies? Besides, isn't Adam a doctor, too," Kimberly asked."Just because it's not my specialty doesn't mean I don't know how to do it. I just hope I never have to put the knowledge to good use. Adam is a cardiologist and got the same basic course in it that I did," Meredith said.

"I'll go see the seamstress and I'll see you at the rehearsal dinner," Kimberly said.

"That's great. We'll meet for coffee again," Meredith said.

"OK. I'll call you tonight," Kimberly nodded as she watched Kimberly dash off.

Picking up her cup, she walked in the opposite direction from Kimberly. She was thinking about how Kimberly should be the one getting married. Shaking her head, Meredith thought about the reasons behind Tommy breaking up with her. She hadn't liked his reasoning, but she understood. She just wish he'd pull his head out of his ass and realize how great Kimberly was for him. Of course, Meredith was keeping a big secret from her brother. She had told Rocky, but only because she couldn't keep it from him.

Meredith's cell phone rang, dragging her away from her thoughts.

"Hey, honey," Meredith said."Hey, babe. Did you get Kim to agree," Rocky asked."Yeah, but she doesn't want to have any unnecessary contact with Tommy," she said.

"Is she going to tell Tommy her big secret before the ceremony," Rocky asked."Probably not. She's determined to put my brother behind her and I can't say as I blame her considering everything they have been through, but still I wish things were a little happier for our wedding," Meredith said."Everything will be great. At least we can be assured that they won't fight and ruin our big day," Rocky said."You're right. Are you at home," she asked."Just walked up the stairs to the apartment," he answered."I'll see you in a few. I met Kimberly at the coffee shop on the corner," she said."See you soon. Love you, babe," he said."Love you," she replied before slipping the phone back into her walked down the street toward the building she and Rocky had called home for the last six years. They had just finished the renovation of the top two floors of the building and were going to move into the space after their wedding, which was in three weeks. All the last minute touches were running through Meredith's head. She was mentally ticking off things to do when she arrived at her building. She entered the key code on the front door and stepped inside. She turned the key to unlock the door that lead to the stairs and walked up to the loft she'd been calling home for quite a while.

She was surprised to find her mom sitting at the dining room table, papers covering the surface.

"What's up, mom," she asked."I'm just dropping by to finalize everything for the wedding. I'm making the final payments on everything and want to make sure they have everything the way you want it," she said.

Meredith pulled out a chair and sat down next to her mom.

They looked over the menu for the reception. Meredith and Rocky had agreed on lemon pepper grilled chicken and lemon pepper salmon with fresh asparagus and medallion red potatoes for the main course. They would serve shrimp cocktail as an appetizer and the carrot-cake wedding cake featured red and purple flowers. The centerpieces were lilacs and purple tulips in red vases.

The bridesmaids would all wear strapless purple gowns with either a pink or yellow sash around the waist. They would all carry red roses wrapped in purple ribbons.

They were having the reception at the botanical gardens glass room. It overlooked the city and Meredith had always wanted to have her reception there. They were going to be married at Angel Grove First Methodist. Tommy was Rocky's best man and Zack, Adam and Jason were groomsmen. Kimberly was Meredith's maid of honor. Aisha was matron of honor. Tanya, despite being pregnant and about to pop, insisted on standing up for the couple. Katherine was also in the wedding party. Billy was going to officiate the ceremony. Meredith had gotten special permission for Billy to perform the ceremony. He'd gotten licensed just so he could perform Meredith and Rocky's wedding, but was getting a reputation as the one to officiate over 'ranger' ceremonies.

"Everything looks right to me, mom. I hope there won't be any complications," Meredith said after spending an hour going over things with her mom.

"The only thing I can't help with is the honeymoon because Rocky won't let that secret go," her mom said, smiling."And I'm not telling anyone. Meri will find out when we get there," he said, kissing her on the top of her head.

"Well, I'm off to have dinner with your father. Oh, Meri, please call you brother. He's avoiding me because he knows I'll ask how he's doing and he doesn't want to talk about it with me," her mom said."Tommy is fine. Just because everyone thinks he and Kimberly should be together, doesn't mean they should be. I'm sure Tommy and Kimberly talked about it before making that decision. Besides mom, it was a year ago," Meredith said."I know, but I'm a mom. I worry," Mrs. Oliver hugged her mom and closed the door behind her. She turned around and had her nose planted into Rocky's chest. He wrapped his arms around her and she closed her eyes."So, they haven't talked in the year they've been broken up," he asked.

"Yep. Tommy hasn't even asked about her. And he transferred schools so he wouldn't run into her. I wish I could tell each one of them what the deal is, but I'm sworn to secrecy," Meredith said."It'll work out. But, you know what I think you should do if things don't change after the wedding," Rocky said."Yes and I'll do it, but I hope I don't have to," she said.

The next three weeks flew by in a flurry of activity. Meredith had started her residency program two weeks before the wedding so she could have the time off for the wedding and honeymoon.

The night of the rehearsal dinner, the butterflies hit Meredith. She wasn't worried about the wedding. She knew she and Rocky were going to get married, she was worried about Tommy and Kimberly seeing each other after their break up.

Rocky's parents had decided to have the rehearsal dinner at their restaurant. A few years ago, Rocky's parents had purchased a place and opened their own restaurant. It was a popular place for all types of people and Rocky's parents seemed happy meeting and greeting customers and cooking for them. That night, they had closed the place down and were holding a big party for Meredith and Rocky.

Tommy arrived shortly after Meredith and Rocky. The scene at the church had been tense, but he and Kimberly didn't have to speak or look at each other. They merely smiled as they walked down the aisle. They hadn't spoken and hadn't made things bad for Meredith and Rocky.

Tommy wasn't prepared for how good Kimberly had looked. She was wearing a long tie-dyed dress with flip flops. Meredith had been wearing a Hawaiian shirt dress with flip flops, so Tommy figured they had coordinated their clothing. Kimberly was still beautiful, but Tommy detected a bitterness and harshness that had existed before. He knew he was the most likely cause of that and he wanted to kick his own ass.

He hoped the ceremony was shorter than the rehearsal because he was ready for this weekend to be over.

Kimberly hadn't expected him to look the same. He did look the same, but he also looked better. She detected a hint of sadness in his eyes and, secretly, she hoped he was the cause of that. She hoped he felt the pain she did everyday since they'd parted. She was anxious for this weekend to be over because she wasn't prepared for what seeing him conjured up. Despite the pain he'd caused, she was still in love with him. Seeing him, despite the chill between them, brought it to the surface.

The morning of the wedding was a beautiful one. The clouds disappeared giving a clear and sunny sky. There was a slight breeze. Meredith stood in the bridal room, getting the finishing touches on her makeup. Kimberly straightened the veil and Aisha did the skirt so Meredith would be prepared when she walked down the aisle.

"That dress is amazing," Aisha said. The dress was sleeveless with a full skirt. There was beading on the bodice and around the waist. There was also beading on the bottom of the dress. A bow with long sides, hung from the back. It allowed the gown to be bustled, showing off additional ornate beading down the back of the dress.

"Thanks. I just hope I don't trip," Meredith adjusted the tiara on Meredith's head and handed her a bouquet, just as Dr. Oliver opened the door.

"Time to get ready," he said.

The bridesmaids squeeze Meredith's hand as they all leave to line up. Meredith takes her father's arm as the music for 'Here Comes the Bride,' plays.

The doors opened to reveal everyone on their feet. Meredith put one foot in front of the other and walked down the aisle. Her father turned her over to Rocky and the two exchanged their vows and wedding rings. "It is my pleasure to present for the first time, Rocky and Meredith DeSantos," Billy said.

The couple held hands and walked back down the aisle to the awaiting limo that took them to the reception.

Hours later, her feet numb from all the dancing and wearing her heels, she was dancing with her brother."Are you going to say something? She's going to leave pretty soon," Meredith said."There's nothing to say, Meri. You know why I broke up with her and if I'm miserable than that's what I deserve," he started to say something else, but Tommy glared at her. She decided to lay off the subject and concentrate on her marriage.

Meredith was enjoying some water when she saw Kimberly slip out of the reception. Meredith watched Kimberly as she left. This was what she thought was the last chance for Tommy and Kimberly, walk out of the room. She told herself right then, if Tommy and Kimberly weren't reunited by the time she returned from her honeymoon, she was telling Tommy the truth. She rejoined Rocky and the dance floor and forgot about everything except that one the reception, Rocky and Meredith changed. After being showered with bubbles by their friends, they took off to Rocky's secret honeymoon spot."Where are we going," she asked,"Greece," Rocky said as Meredith squealed with delight.

When the plane landed, they were taken to their remote beach house and there they spent the rest of their honeymoon getting to know each other.

After two weeks in the Greek sun, Meredith and Rocky returned home. It came as no surprise to Meredith, that, despite having a lot of things in common, Tommy and Kimberly had not reunited. "Well, looks like I have to take matters into my own hands," Meredith told Rocky before setting off to find her brother and tell him what had happened and what could happen.

***This is filler, I know. I haven't written in a while and when this was originally written, I was really tired, so I'm hoping it makes sense. I tried to make corrections, but you know how that goes. So, what is the reason behind the Tommy and Kimberly break up? What is Meredith hiding from her brother?***-mereditholiver


	31. Standing at the Edge

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the character of Meredith and this rambling epic story. This is the chapter I'm sure you've all been waiting for because it's answers some questions. Course it also leaves some in it's wake, but whatever. Enjoy!

STANDING AT THE EDGE

He knew this would happen. One day the falcon and crane would be separated. He just never thought it would be because they chose to part. He never thought he would utter those words, 'Maybe we shouldn't be together.' He loved her with every fiber of his being.

So why was he saying good-bye?

He had to.

He wasn't given a choice. Well, he was given a choice, but the other alternative wasn't going to work.

Now, he was certain the grief would kill him.

'May the power protect you' is a completely meaningless phrase when your heart is ripped to shreds. It will never be put back together.

That great power he had possessed couldn't do a damn thing to fix the ache and loneliness he had in his heart. All the superhuman speed and strength couldn't help them. Nothing was going to save him.

He did what he had to do to protect her. As much as it killed him to know he had hurt her, it hurt him more to know that he couldn't sacrifice her. He had to sacrifice their love and his heart.

When he was told by Andros that, while the two of them could stay together, she would die within three years of them reuniting. If she was on her own, she wouldn't be a target and he would be able to protect her.

As the former leader of three power ranger teams and the mentor to one, he knew he would be a target. He THOUGHT giving up his powers not once or twice, but THREE times would tell the evil powers that be that he was finished. He was no longer a threat to them.

When Andros told him that marrying Kimberly would cause every villain in the universe to seek them out, he realized what he had to do. Andros said that the villains were trying to make sure he and Kimberly never had children. That child would possess all the power of the two greatest rangers of all time. Kimberly was the longest serving and original pink ranger. Tommy was considered a legend among the other rangers that came after him. That was enough to scare the evil empires in the galaxy. If they could destroy the 'power couple' then they would have a chance to conquer Earth.

Tommy had a choice: be happy with Kim for a few years before she would be killed or break her heart now and allow her to be happy later and save the world. It was a given as to what he was going to do.

He stood on the cliff overlooking the lake. It wasn't the same lake they had walked around as teenagers, full of love and promise. The lake had taken a hardened appearance, seeming to have aged just like Tommy had.

Andros appeared next to him on the cliff. "You have to know something. Breaking up with her hasn't stopped them coming after her. There's got to be something else. Are you positive that you haven't had contact with her since you broke up. They can't suspect that this might be a ploy. That you and Kim faked breaking up and you are secretly with her at night," he said.

"I wish that were true. I made sure she never wants to see me again. It was tough at Meri's wedding, but that couldn't be helped," Tommy said.

"Maybe we were wrong," Andros said.

"I swear to God, Andros, if this is all a mistake and I broke the heart of the only woman I am ever going to love than I think you owe me an explanation or an apology. How could you be wrong about this? You're supposed to have images from the future," he said, fuming.

"There has to be something that ties the two of you together," Andros said.

"I don't know what it could be. Maybe my sister knows something. Although I can't imagine that's the case," Tommy said.

Just then his cell phone rang. The ID said 'Meredith'

"Yeah, sis," he said, the strain of his conversation with Andros evident.

"Bro, listen we have to talk," she said.

"About," he questioned her.

"Kimberly," she said. Hearing her name caused Tommy to suck in his breath. "Why," he said. "Look, we need to talk. Where are you," she asked him.

"The lake."

"Perfect. I'm just around the corner. I'll meet you," she said and ended the call.

"Meredith is coming to talk to me about Kimberly. Maybe she'll have the answer to the question," Tommy said.

"What question is that," Andros asked.

"Why Kimberly is still being stalked," he said, glaring at Andros. Andros and Tommy noticed Meredith climbing the hill toward them. Andros teleported back to his ship, leaving the siblings to talk.

"What is so important that you had to bring Kimberly up," he said.

Meredith took a calming breath. She'd seen this side of her brother before and she hated it. She knew she had to tread lightly during this conversation, but, as her husband had told her, she had to come out and say it or he wouldn't believe her.

"Kimberly had a baby. Your baby. Tommy, you're a father," she said.

Tommy started to open his mouth, but the gravity of the words caused him to close it. He couldn't believe it.

"That's impossible," he said, only halfway believing it.

"Come on Tommy, you two were all over each other in high school. Kimberly having a baby is a distinct possibility. Admit it. You and Kimberly have a child together and you have to go find her, apologize and help her with your child," she said.

Tommy was shell-shocked. His sister, his best friend was telling him the impossible. If he and Kimberly had a child, then all the precautions they had taken had, somehow, failed.

Meredith looked at her brother. She knew he was processing her information. She knew he was shocked by it.

"That would explain it," Tommy said, causing Meredith to stare at him.

"Explain what," she asked.

"Why the evil in this world won't leave her alone. I broke up with her to save the world, to save her. Now I find the one thing they didn't want to see happen, us have a child, has come true," Tommy said.

"You're going to have to explain this one to me bro. You know that I hate how you ended things with Kimberly, but you're my brother and I love you no matter what. I'm sure that Rocky wants to kick your ass for what you did to Kim, but he supports me because I am your sister. Why did you do it," she asked him.

"Andros told me it was to save the future. The evil in the world feared us being together and having a family which would be unstoppable. The power of our child would be incredible. Apparently, by ending things so that it wasn't a possibility, I was saving the world and saving her. Andros just told me that she's still being stalked. Her having my child would explain that," he said, the gravity of the situation showing in his face. He ran his hands over his face and put his hand through his hair.

Meredith looked at her brother. She could understand why he did what he did. She didn't agree, but she knew that he loved Kimberly with his whole being. If he could keep her alive and safe, he'd do whatever he had to do to make it happen. Rocky would do the same thing, despite the pain to himself and what everyone, including Meredith, would think of him.

"Well, you better figure out how to protect them because if evil is looking to keep you two apart, then they may try to destroy your child. A child that Kimberly loves more than anything in this world. You need to fix this, right now, Thomas Michael," Meredith said.

Tommy stared at his sister. He knew she was right and, just like in high school, he hated to admit it. He blinked, but Meredith was still staring at him. He grabbed her hands. "How can I do that," he asked her, desperately seeking an answer.

"Find her. Tell her. That's the only way this situation is going to be solved. I don't have the answers, Tommy. I can only support you. Rocky and I want you two back together. I'm sure you've seen how it's affected everyone. You need to tell her you love her. You need to fight for her this time," she said.

"But I said some pretty awful things, Meri," he said, his eyes filling with tears at the thought of what he'd said to Kimberly.

"I know that. But you have to ask for forgiveness and try or it's all going to be lost," she said.

She held out a piece of paper with an address and phone number on it. Tommy glanced at it and knew immediately that, once again, his sister was providing the answer before he asked the questions.

"I love you, Meri. You're the best sister anyone could have. I hope Rocky appreciates that," he said, giving his sister a hug.

Meredith hugged him back. "He knows and I love you, too. You're the greatest brother in the world."

Tommy walked down the hill toward his Jeep. He was going to have to explain this to Kimberly and he didn't think that was going to be easy.

***HEHEHE! How was that? What's Kimberly going to have to say to Tommy? To Meredith for giving away her location? How is this conversation going to turn out? Are they going to admit the truth to each other? Stick around and see.*** -mereditholiver


	32. Going Back

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but this writing and the character of Meredith. All other characters belong to someone else with more money.

GOING BACK

Tommy ran to his Jeep. He stared at the address Meredith had given him and processed his previous conversation with his sister. He had a child. All the horrible things he'd said and put Kimberly through had been for nothing because she had still managed to have his child.

He pulled out of the parking lot and headed for an older neighborhood in Angel Grove, not far from his childhood home.

He noticed two cars in the driveway and wondered if Kimberly had moved on with her life. She hadn't brought a date to Meredith and Rocky's wedding, but that didn't mean she didn't have a man in her life.

He parked on the street and thought about what he was going to say. He had a feeling she would let him in the house, if only to see his child.

He put his hand on the door handle and stopped himself.

'A child. I have a child,' he thought to himself. Saying it still didn't make it seem real. He stepped out of his Jeep and walked around the front of the vehicle to Kimberly's front door.

He rang the bell and was shocked when Jason answered the door.

"Tommy. Haven't seen you in a while," Jason said."Wasn't expecting you to be here," Tommy said."Meri called me. She told me she told you the truth and had sent you here. I wanted to make sure everything was OK, especially with my niece in the house," Jason said."I have a daughter," Tommy said, barely above a whisper."Yeah, but Kimberly should be the one to talk to you about that. Come in. She's waiting for you in the kitchen," Jason said.

Tommy entered the house and noticed Kimberly's touches to the place immediately. There were flowers on many of the surfaces, mostly in shades of pink. The floral print on the sofa in the living room was cheery and made Tommy smile.

He entered the kitchen and saw Kimberly sitting on a stool, holding a mug of coffee. There was another mug across from her and he entered the room and sat down.

"Hi," he said."Screw you," she said.  
>He flinched. He'd never heard her be so harsh. He noticed the anger in her eyes and the coldness that flashed through them when he looked at her.<p>

He heard a soft cry coming from the monitor sitting on the counter.

"I'll get her," Jason called before heading upstairs."That's Siobhan Anne. She's three months old," Kimberly said. Jason came downstairs holding a pink bundle in his arms.

He approached Tommy and handed him Siobhan.

Tommy took his daughter and marveled at the site. She had closed her eyes and settled back to sleep. He looked at Kimberly. "She's beautiful. She looks like you," he said."Thanks, but she looks just like you as a baby. At least she looks like the pictures your sister showed me," Kimberly said."Are you going to let me be a part of her life," he asked, looking at his daughter."I don't really have a choice. You are her father, despite how much I don't want that to be true," she said.

Siobhan started to fuss again. Jason took the baby from Tommy and took the bottle that he'd been warming with him to the living room."What's with Jason," Tommy asked."It's his goddaughter, so he comes over and stays with her. Katherine's going to watch her when I go back to work. At least until she has her baby," Kimberly said."I didn't know she was pregnant," Tommy said, taking a sip of his coffee.

"They just found out. Jason's trying to talk Katherine into getting married, but she wants to wait until after the baby comes. He's decided to get some practice in with his 'niece' so he'll know how to take care of a baby," Kimberly said. She took a deep breath and looked at Tommy. "You can see her whenever you want. You are her father and she will need you in her life," Kimberly said.

"Thank you. Look, I want to talk about our breakup," he said."There's nothing to talk about. You said you didn't love me as much as I loved you. You told me you were seeing another woman while we were dating. What else is there left to say, Tommy," she asked.

"I had my reasons for telling you that. None of it is true," he said. "I had a good reason for everything I did," he said.

"You had reasons," she said, leaning back on her stool. "The great Tommy Oliver had 'reasons' for breaking my heart and making me feel like a fool. This should be interesting," she said.

"I did have my reasons. Andros came to me a year and a half ago and told me that I had to break things off with you in order to keep you safe. Apparently Evil was trying destroy us. They wanted to destroy you so we would never have a child. They knew our child could be the one thing they would NEVER be able to defeat. I was told that if we stayed together and got married, you'd be dead within 3 years. If we broke up, the world would be saved. I agonized over that decision. I tried to get Andros to admit if there was anyway to keep either scenario from happening. He said there was nothing we could do. I had to break up with you in such a way that you wouldn't want to get back together. Lying to you that day was the most difficult thing I ever had to do. I know I was wrong and should have told you, but I wanted to protect you. Much like you want to protect Siobhan. I never stopped loving you," Tommy said."Nice speech, but it doesn't make up for what you said. You told me you didn't love me and you felt that we had run our course," she said."I was trying to save you," he said."It didn't occur to you to tell me what you were doing? Don't you think I should have had a say in my life? My future," she asked."I thought it would be better if you didn't know the truth. I knew if I told you, you would try to tell me that you would want to figure out a way to beat it. I couldn't risk your life. I'd feel better knowing you were alive and breathing even if you were away from me and hated me. It's much more comforting knowing that then knowing I played a part in your death. I love you too much to see you die," Tommy said."That's all so noble of you, Tommy. That was the happiest day of my life, except when Siobhan was born. It was also the saddest. I found out that day that I was pregnant. I was all prepared to tell you that we were going to become parents when you delivered your bombshell. I was so speechless about the whole thing that I didn't get to tell you. Meredith dragged the truth out of me a few months before she was born. She was always the more perceptive out of the two of you. I made her promise not to tell you because I was still hurting. I'm still hurting, but I didn't kill you when you walked in the kitchen, so I'm doing better," she said.

"I lied to you about not loving you and about us having run our course. I want us to be a family. I want us to raise Siobhan and have a whole house full of kids. I want us to be together," Tommy looked at him. She still loved him. He was her daughter's father and she was willing to interact with him because of her, but she wasn't willing to fall back into his arms, like nothing had happened.

"I can't do that, Tommy," she turned away and wiped the tears from her eyes. She was instantly taken back to that day she found out she was pregnant and Tommy had crushed her dreams and broken her heart.

_Kimberly didn't need to actually see the results of the pregnancy test to know that she was pregnant. She knew. _

_She could hardly contain her excitement. She loved Tommy with all her heart and to find out they had created a child together was amazing. _

_She couldn't wait to tell Tommy. _

_She had moved in with Tommy after Tanya and Adam had gotten engaged and moved into a place of their own. _

_She called Jason to find out if he would stay at Katherine's that night so he could have some time alone with Tommy. Jason hadn't had a problem and Kimberly set about getting Tommy's favorite meal ready for him. She picked up the phone again and called Meredith._

"_Hey, Kim," Meredith said._

"_Hey, Meri. I need some help. I want to make Tommy's favorite dinner tonight and you know what I'm like in the kitchen," she said."That's so sweet and I'd love to help tonight, but I have a lab this evening. Oh, Rocky is free. He'll come by and help you," Meredith said._

"_Rocky," Kim questioned."Rocky is a wiz in the kitchen. He's been cooking while I'm finishing up med school and planning this wedding. I'll call him and he'll bring the groceries. That work for you," Meredith asked."OK. If you're sure," Kim said."I am. Let me know how it goes," Meredith said before they ended the call._

_Kim got the pots and pans out of the kitchen and waited for Rocky._

_45 minutes later, Rocky knocked on the door. Kim let him in and he set his three bags of groceries on the counter._

"_Meri said you wanted to fix Tommy's favorite and said I had to help you," Rocky said."Yep. I know how much he loves manicotti. I want to learn to make it so I can do this for him all the time," she said._

"_Well, if you want, I'll walk you through it," Rocky smiled and the two set about making Tommy's favorite dinner._

_An hour later, the dish was baking in the oven and Rocky told Kimberly to take it out when the timer dinged._

"_Are you sure," she asked."It's almost finished and if you take it out when the timer goes off, you can't mess it up," Rocky said._

_He said goodbye and headed out the door. Kimberly perched on the stool and waited for the timer to ding. She jumped when it went off and carefully removed the dish from the oven. She placed it on the hot pad Rocky had placed on the counter and went to set the table._

_She rushed into the bedroom to change into her favorite pink dress and was pouring sparkling cider into champagne flutes for her and Tommy to celebrate. She heard his key in the door and turned off the lights so the only thing illuminating the apartment was the candles she'd set around the space. She was waiting by the dining room table when he entered the apartment._

"_Hey, handsome," she said rushing to him. When she wrapped her arms around him, he turned away so she kissed his cheek._

"_What's wrong," she asked him, immediately alarmed by his response to her._

"_I have something to tell you. And it isn't easy," he said._

_Kimberly was immediately alarmed and sat down on the sofa. Tommy started pacing the room, oblivious to the candles in the room._

"_I think it's time that we start seeing other people. I'm having a hard time adjusting to you being here all the time. It's smothering," he said."Well I can always move back out. I don't want to break up with you, Tommy," she said._

"_Look, I don't want to be with you anymore. You act like a spoiled little princess and I can't handle that anymore. It was cute in high school, but now it's just annoying. I can't be expected to 'save' you all the time. You have to learn to grow up," he said to felt like she'd been slapped. She couldn't believe that Tommy was saying these things to her._

"_What are you saying," she asked him, tears clouding her vision, but she refused to allow them to fall._

"_Drop the dumb Valley girl routine. It's pathetic. I'm not in love with you anymore. I've been seeing someone else while you've been studying for your nursing exams. I found someone who lets me be me and I don't have to share my friends with. I found someone who hasn't slept with my best friend," Tommy said._

_Kimberly slapped Tommy. She felt like she'd been kicked. To hear those words come from Tommy's mouth had not only ripped her heart out, it pulverized it. She had nothing left. _

"_You know I couldn't control what happened during that time," she said._

"_You've always said that, but there's always a little bit of truth in the subconscious things we do," he said._

_Kimberly didn't care how she looked to Tommy. The tears were falling fast now and she couldn't see any longer._

"_I would never have slept with Jason if we both hadn't been evil. You know that," she said._

_When Kimberly had been kidnapped, she and had been turned evil by Divatox. The spell didn't last long and that was how Divatox discovered that she and Jason were power rangers. Divatox made the decision to drop them into Maligore's pit because she wanted them to be the prefect evil specimens. Her plan backfired when Tommy rescued her and Meredith helped Jason. However, they were evil for 24 hours on the ship before their power ranger powers overpowered the evil spell. During that time, Jason and Kimberly had thought about ways to hurt their 'friends.' One way was to sleep together, so they had. When the evil wore off, Jason and Kimberly swore the other to secrecy. Jason didn't want Katherine to find out and Kimberly was afraid of what Tommy would do when he found out. Jason and Kimberly had told Tommy and Katherine what had happened several years later and they had understood. After all, Tommy and Katherine had been evil at one point and understood what it could do to a person. The subject was never brought up and Kimberly had put it in the back of her mind._

_Hearing Tommy voice it out loud didn't upset Kimberly, it angered her._

_She got up off the couch and went into the bedroom. She ripped the posters off the wall and threw her clothes into two suitcases. She took the picture of her and Tommy off the nightstand and tore the picture in half. She threw the picture on to the bed and carried her suitcases out of the apartment. She turned around and looked in Tommy's direction before saying, "Go to Hell," and slamming the door. She didn't know where she was going to go, but she knew she had to get away. Her mother's home in Angel Grove was vacant and awaiting someone to rent it. Kimberly called her mom and told her she was going to live in the house. Her mom hadn't asked any questions. She told Kim the house was hers anyway and to enjoy it. Kim hopped into her Miata and headed off toward the house. As much as her heart was hurting after what had just transpired between her and Tommy, she was going to continue on and raise their child. She was never going to tell Tommy the truth because he didn't deserve to know. He didn't deserve this child they had created in love. Not if there was hate between the two of them._

_Kimberly had stayed in her mom's house for a few months, before moving into a home she purchased herself. She got herself a job as a neonatal intensive care nurse and was working her way through school to become a nurse practitioner. Jason and Katherine had moved into a home not far from Kimberly and helped watch Siobhan while she worked. Jason had been her birthing coach. _

_She'd taken care of herself this last year and she didn't need any help from anyone. She'd never told anyone what Tommy had said to her because the pain was too raw._

Kimberly wiped the remaining tears from face and promised herself she was going to get over him. One way or another. The only part Tommy would have in her life, was as Siobhan's father.

***There's the meeting and Kimberly's take on the whole thing. Tommy's tale is up next. Stick around.*** -mereditholiver


	33. Take It or Leave It

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters.

TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT

Tommy thought back to that day also. He hadn't known Kimberly was pregnant. If he had, it would have definitely changed things for them. He wouldn't have let her go - at all.

He had blocked the entire scene out of his head. He remembered before he came home and he remembered what he'd done after she'd left.

The rest of the last year was him just existing. Going to Meri's for dinner. Going to his parent's place. Hanging out with Jason and Adam. Teaching. Preparing for a dig. He'd just existed in his space. He hadn't been happy. Not since she'd left.

_Tommy didn't want to go home. He wanted to delay what was about to happen. He was going to break up with Kimberly because of what he'd heard from Andros._

"_What are you saying? Our being together is going to cause Kimberly's death? I don't follow," Tommy said."The evil that remains in the world knows there is a chance they can rule, but only if they get rid of the only thing that is a threat to their total domination. A child born between you and Kimberly. That child, and any other children, would have the combined powers of both its parents. You are both the most powerful rangers that have ever been. The evil powers will stop at nothing to prevent this. If you two get married, they will throw everything they have after you. They will make it very difficult for you to be together. They will eventually succeed in separating you both. By killing Kimberly," Andros had hearing that sentence, Tommy's heart had stopped. They had always been targeted when they were dating in high school, but they weren't rangers any longer. They didn't hold the power now. They were supposed to be able to enjoy their lives now without the ability to morph or the prospect of being attacked. They were normal people. _

"_Why can't they leave us alone? We don't have any powers now," Tommy said."The power will always protect you both and you are always a ranger, whether you have a power coin or a morpher. You may have given up your powers twice as the green ranger and again as the red ranger, but you're still a ranger. So is Kimberly. The power changes everyone that holds it and those changes are premanent. The power is you, Tommy. Nothing you do now is going to change that. There isn't anyway anyone or anything can defeat. The only way, is by killing you or Kimberly. By killing Kimberly, they take away your reason for living," Andros said._

_Tommy nodded his head. He understood EXACTLY what Andros was getting at, but he hated what he was going to have to do. He had to make Kimberly hate him so she would leave him alone. He hated what he was going to do._

_Tommy had left Andros and headed home, perfectly willing to forget what he'd found out and be happy with Kimberly, but he knew the threats would start. He had to protect her. Knowing she was alive and breathing, would have to comfort him. _

_If Kimberly hated him, he figured it was a small price to pay for her life._

_He took a deep breath and entered the apartment._

Tommy stared at the back of Kimberly's head. He longed to take her in his arms and show her just how much of a fool he had been, but he knew that wasn't what she wanted. The best he could ever hope for was for her to forgive him and allow him to be part of his child's life.

"Kimberly. You're still being stalked. Someone is threatening you and it's all because of Siobhan. You and I have to work together to defeat this evil," Tommy said, his voice on the verge of panic.

"Tommy, I was a power ranger long before you were one. I think I can handle myself if I'm being attacked," she said."I know that, but I'm thinking about Siobhan. You can't keep you and she safe," he said.

"Yes I can. I can keep the two of us safe. I have Jason if I need him," Kimberly said."You know that that's not going to be enough. You and I have to be together to fight this," he said."You're using this as a reason for us to get back together. I'm not falling for it. Do you understand? I'm not going to fall at your feet an let you be my white knight. I'm a bit too old for fairy tales," she was hurt. The only thing he wanted to do was protect Kimberly, but she wasn't letting him. She was also insisting that she could do a better job with the Siobhan than he could.

"Kim, I want nothing but to keep you and my daughter safe. Can't you let me do that," he asked."Look, you can see Siobhan whenever you want. I'd like to keep it as neat as possible. Less drama," Kimberly said.

"I want to be with you AND our daughter. Can you understand that," he asked her."You need to understand and handle this. It's not going to be the dream we both had in high school. We've done a lot of growing up since them. This is my offer. Take it or get the hell out of my house," she said.

Tommy looked at Kimberly, his mouth hanging open. Kimberly had delivered an ultimatum. This was something she had never done to him before. He didn't know how to respond. He just stared at her; his dark hazel eyes penetrating her brown ones.

***Kim delivered an ultimatum. What's going to happen with them? What's Tommy going to say? Check out the next chapters.*** -mereditholiver


	34. Acceptance

DISCLAIMER: See previous.

ACCEPTANCE

She couldn't believe she'd said that. Even as she stood there, her arms folded across her chest, her jaw clenched to keep her face at a neutral expression. She was fighting her heart that wanted her to tell Tommy she wanted him, despite what he'd said, but her head was going to win this battle. Her head was going to make Tommy suffer for what he'd done to her. She wasn't going to keep him from Siobhan but she could keep him from herself. At least until she was sure she could trust him.

"When can I see Siobhan," Tommy asked. Kimberly looked in his eyes and knew that wasn't what he wanted to say, but he had respected her boundaries.

"Whenever you would like. I'm teaching a toddler tumbling class at Rocky's dojo and Jason usually watches Siobhan on those nights. You can have her tomorrow if you would like. We can discuss a more set schedule after you see how she does," she said, amazed at the calm tone in his voice."Fine. Do you want me to pick her up," he asked, mentally going through what he needed to buy for her so she could stay at his home.

"Can you pick her up at the dojo? I usually take her there so Meri and Rocky can see her. Sometimes Meri and Rocky watch her when Jason's doing other things," Kimberly said."Wait. Meri's been involved all this time," Tommy asked, suddenly upset at his sister.

"Look, Tommy, Meri's a doctor. She knew I was pregnant before I told anyone officially. I swore her to secrecy. She was trying to get me to tell you a few weeks ago at the wedding, but I couldn't face you. I wasn't ready. She told me she couldn't stand lying to you anymore and was going to tell you the truth. I didn't stop her because I wanted you to know your child. I just didn't want to talk to you," Kim said. She took a deep breath and continued, "I've been taking her to see Meri and swore her to keep it a secret."

"She told me the baby stuff in her new apartment was for Tanya and Adam's new baby," he said."Well, it is for Jasmine, but also for Siobhan. Rocky's become the Park's defacto sitter since the baby was born. They don't trust anyone else to watch the baby. It's actually kind of cute," Kim said.

"I'll pick her up at Meri's then," Tommy said."OK. How about 5:30? Will that work with your school schedule," Kim asked."Yeah, that's fine. I'm usually done by 2:30," he said."I'll see you tomorrow," she said. Unsure of what else to say, Tommy said goodbye and waved as he walked toward the door. He found himself on the front porch staring at his Jeep and trying to remember exactly what happened.

He unlocked the car door and got inside. He pulled out his cell phone and called his sister. She had a lot of explaining to do. He was also going to need to do some shopping and he hoped she'd help him.

Meredith sat at the dining room table in her new apartment. She couldn't get over the amount of space this new place provided or that it was the same building they'd been living in for the last few years. The new place was perfect for beginning their new life together.

Rocky was teaching a class downstairs in the dojo while Meredith was preparing dinner. She smiled at the site of a bottle warmer on the counter top. Adam and Tanya hadn't found a sitter they trusted, so Rocky had offered to do the babysitting duties until the found something suitable. He loved his god daughter and Meredith was feeling drawn to having children.

Even though she and Rocky had only been married for six weeks, Meredith felt she could broach the subject with her husband to see where he stood on the matter. She had just taken the hash brown casserole out of the oven when Rocky opened the front door. "Hey, babe," he said coming into the kitchen.

They shared a kiss. "You can grab a shower before you eat if you want. This needs to cool before we eat," Meredith said."You want to join me," he asked, his brown eyes saying what he desired. Before Meredith could say anything, Rocky grabbed her hand and led her upstairs to their bedroom. They had an en-suite bath that included a glassed in shower and a large whirlpool tub. Meredith had to smile at her husband as she followed him into the shower.

Thirty minutes later, the couple came out of the bathroom. Meredith was wearing one of Rocky's shirts, which just came to her mid-thigh. It was a look Rocky found very appealing. He placed a kiss on his wife's neck as he wrapped his arms around her waist. "We do have dinner waiting downstairs, you know that right," she said."Yeah, but I can't help it if I'm so in love with you and find you especially desirable in my clothes," he said. She swatted him away and he walked to the dresser and pulled out a pair of boxers and a pair of karate pants. Meredith went downstairs to dish up the casserole and noticed her cell phone on the counter.

She put the plates on the table and scrolled through the missed calls on her phone. Most were from Tommy with one from Kimberly.

Meredith was about to listen to the message from Tommy when there was a knock on the door. There were only a few people who had a key to the door that led to their apartment and they were all friends. Meredith wasn't sure who to expect on the other side of the door, but she was willing to bet it was Tommy.

She opened the door and wasn't surprised to see her brother on the other side. Rocky was coming down the stairs. "Babe, who's at the… Tommy," he said.

Tommy looked at his sister and brother-in-law. Meredith refused to blush. "I AM married," she said, heading up the stairs. She emerged wearing yoga pants and the same t-shirt as before.

Rocky was sitting at the table, having given Tommy a plate of Meredith's casserole.

"What brings you by," Rocky asked."Siobhan," he said, staring at his sister who was standing in the doorway of the dining room."What about her? I'm the one that told you she existed," Meredith said, sitting next to Rocky, across from Tommy.

"You didn't tell me you've been a part of her life since before she was born. You've been keeping a huge secret from me," Tommy said."It wasn't my place to tell you. At least not until Kim was ready for you to know," Meredith said."What about the fact that you're MY sister," he asked."What about it? Just because you and I are family doesn't mean I'm going to turn my back when my best friend asks me to keep her confidence. She wasn't ready to let you in and you know it. If I'd told you, you would have swooped in and try to save her, just like you have always done when anything concerns her. It's not that easy. Kimberly's really hurt by what you said and, quite frankly, I can't believe you did that," Meredith said."You know why. I was trying to keep her safe. I did not want to leave her, you know that," he said.

"Tommy, Meri wanted to tell you. She tried to get Kimberly to tell you before the baby was born, but Kim didn't want you to come and be with her out of obligation. She wants you to want to be with her, regardless of the situation," Rocky said."You deserve the chance to be a father, but you're going to have to fight to get Kimberly back," Meredith said.

Tommy stared at his plate. Part of him wanted to yell at Meredith for what she knew and didn't tell him and a part of him agreed with her. He would probably do the same thing if he'd been in her shoes.

"All the reasons aside, think you can help me get the stuff for my place so I can watch her," Tommy asked."Sure. When are you getting her," Meredith asked."Tomorrow during her tumbling class," he said."OK. Rocky, you want to go and get some baby stuff," Meredith asked.

"No, I think I'll use this break to look at the books for the dojo. Unless you want me to go," he said."Nope, do what you need to. I'll go upstairs and change," Meredith said and went back up to get into her jeans and sweatshirt.

"So, you've become a babysitter," Tommy asked, a smile teasing itself across his mouth."Yeah. I've certainly got plenty of practice," Rocky said."You and Meri going to do that any time soon," Tommy asked."Whenever Meri's ready, but I have to confess, I rather like the fact that we're together alone for the moment. She's so busy with her residency that I don't get to see her a lot. This is a rare moment for us. She's got a week off because her attending is on vacation and said she didn't have to work," Rocky said."Guess that's a perk of interning with your dad," TOTommy said."True, although I don't think anyone knows Meri is Jim's daughter. It's been a nice change for her," Rocky said. He stared at his brother in every way but blood and asked, "You're scared, aren't you."

"Shitless. I haven't a clue about babies. I don't know what they do, what they need. I'm way out of my element," he said."Well, tomorrow why don't you stay here with Siobhan and Meri and I can help you if you get stuck. Siobhan already comes here anyway," Rocky said."That would be great, Rocko," Tommy said, relief showing in his body as his sister came bouncing down the stairs. "We'll be back," she called as she grabbed her purse and cell phone. She walked to Rocky and kissed him. "Love you," she said."Love you, too," Rocky said. Tommy held the door for his sister and they went down the stairs. Tommy opened the door of his Jeep for his sister. He turned to look at her when he got in the car. "You knew all this time and only told me about her this morning. Why," he asked."Because I knew Kimberly needed you. You told me about the threat that would come to Kim if you two stayed together. Kim's been threatened twice in the last few weeks. She didn't think anything of it because it's a dangerous place out there. When she told me, I immediately remembered what you had told me you'd learned from Andros. It seemed like the right time for you to know. Of course, I'm sure Kim has some choice words for me at the moment," Meredith said. She put her hand on Tommy's and said, "I know you probably hate me for not telling you, but after everything that happened, I couldn't break Kim's confidence. Neither of you was in a condition to deal with it. I didn't know what to do. I do know that you two love each other, despite the hurtful things you said to her. I think she understands, now that you've explained it to her. Give her a bit of time and you'll be back together," Meredith smiled at his sister and they headed off to the store to buy baby gear.

Tommy was clueless. He didn't have any idea of what he was supposed to buy and he didn't even know what Siobhan would need. He already felt like a failure as a father.

Meredith had led the way to the baby department and, with each pushing a cart, was looking at the cribs.

"You're going to need to get one of these. This one looks good," Meredith said, pointing to one of the cribs.

"Whatever is going to be the best for her. We'll get whatever she needs," Tommy said, looking around at all the baby equipment.

Tommy put the box with the crib inside into the cart and Meredith pointed to the mattress for the crib and Tommy added it to the cart.

"Car seats are next. This one is the same one Kim has already, so you should get this one. It has a base so you can each have a seat for her and a base in each car," Meredith said, adding the box to the cart.

The next two hours found the twins going through the entire baby department picking up diapers, wipes, bottles and other things. Meredith picked out a cute pink butterfly crib set complete with blankets and wall hangings. Tommy didn't understand why he needed this stuff, but Meredith insisted that Siobhan needed to feel like she had a room at daddy's. Tommy hadn't said anything in response.

They bought several cans of formula. Meredith put a bathtub and an assortment of shampoos and lotions for a baby in the cart.

"I should get her some clothes," Tommy said."Might be a good idea considering babies do spit up," Meredith said. They selected several outfits. Some dresses, some sleepers and some jumpsuits. Meredith tossed in several different onesies into the cart along with infant socks. Tommy looked at the two carts full of stuff and knew he was forgetting something.

"Do I have everything for a few hours," he asked. He thought he had enough for a few weeks, but Meredith assured him he had enough for the first few visits. "Kimberly will tell you what else you might need. We only have a bassinet for Jasmine. We've got diapers, wipes and baby shampoo. We've got a few outfits incase she has an accident and a few odds and ends.

They paid for the purchases and headed to Tommy's house. Meredith called Rocky to meet her there and help him set up the crib.

"Which room should I use," Tommy asked his sister as they stood in the hallway of his house. The split level home had four bedrooms and three bathrooms on the upstairs level. Half of the basement was unfinished with the other half containing a gym of sorts.

"The room across the hall from yours," Meredith said, gesturing to the room in question. The smallest room, which was to the left of the stairs, was Tommy's study. The room across from that one was the guest room. He'd placed a small couch in the study and a futon in the room they were turning into the nursery.

"What do I do with this furniture," he asked."Well, the dresser can be used for Siobhan. You can put the futon in the basement. You might need to get another dresser later," Meredith the next hour and a half, Rocky and Tommy moved the furniture around and put the futon in the basement. They assembled the crib, while Meredith put the wall hangings on the wall and hung Siobhan's clothes in her closet.

Tommy stood in the doorway when it was finished and was amazed at how they had transformed the room. He looked the car seat in the middle of the room and wondered how it went in the car.

Sensing his trouble, Meredith handed the seat to Rocky who went down stairs with it. He grabbed Tommy's keys off the hook by the door and installed the seat in Tommy's Jeep.

"How does he know all this stuff," Tommy asked his sister as he poured her a glass of lemonade.

"He does have five siblings and he has a god daughter that he adores. He's learned a lot and he's not embarrassed by what he knows," she said.

"He keeps surprising me," Tommy said.

Rocky came back inside and sat down next to Meredith. He took a drink of Meredith's lemonade.

"Car seat's all ready to go. You press both red buttons on the handle to lower the handle or raise it. You pull up on the red handle in the back of the seat to unlock it from the base. Make sure it clicks when you put it in the base to take her somewhere," Rocky and Rocky got up from their seats and started toward the door."Mer, do you think I can handle her tomorrow," Tommy put her hand on her brother's shoulder. "Yeah. But you're staying with Rocky and I tomorrow while you have her so you can learn the ropes. You're going to do fine," she said.

He followed them out the door and stood on his porch. "You think so," he asked, still unsure. Meredith suppressed a grin. It wasn't like Tommy to be unsure of his abilities.

"Of course. After all, you were a power ranger once. As a matter of fact, you were the leader. As I recall, the white ranger could handle anything, with the help of his friends," she said. He hugged his sister and watched as she and Rocky headed back to their home and their life. Tommy was a bit jealous that Meredith had found that domestic bliss he was craving. Now, he had a child, but not the family unit he so desired. 'Maybe Meri's right. I will have Kimberly back and we will be a family. I just have to work on earning Kimberly's trust,' he thought to himself as he shut the door and headed for bed. It had been an emotional day and he wanted to rest. Of course, he figured sleep would elude him on this night, but he was going to try.

***Tommy meets his daughter. Yay! Next up is Tommy's first time 'alone' with his daughter. Will he handle it? Will Kimberly let him back into her life as more than Siobhan's father? Stick around.*** -mereditholiver


	35. Starting Over?

DISCLAIMER: Read the previous chapters. I own Meredith.

STARTING OVER?

Kimberly knocked on the door of Meredith and Rocky's apartment. Tommy was already there, pacing the floor.

Meredith greeted Kim and took the car seat that held her sleeping niece. She took Siobhan to the corner Rocky and she had set up for Jasmine and let her sleep in the car seat.

Tommy stood back. Rocky walked over to his brother-in-law. "You just sit and read of watch TV or something until you hear her wake up. She's still at the stage where you feed them, put them to sleep and change their diapers. It's pretty simple at this point," Rocky said, guiding Tommy to the couch.

Meredith ushered Kimberly out the door and down the stairs to the dojo.

"What," Kimberly asked."Tommy went out and bought a whole bunch of stuff for her. Rocky and I helped set up a crib in one of the rooms of Tommy's house," Meredith said."Tommy wants her to stay with him," Kimberly asked.

"Yeah. He is her father and you know it's for the best," she said.

"I know. I just hope he doesn't think that means we're getting back together," Kimberly said. Meredith raised her eyebrows. "You love him. You never stopped, so don't tell me you're not open to the possibility of getting back together with him. He's apologized," Meredith said.

"I know that, Meri. And I appreciate all the help you've given me, especially not telling Tommy until I was ready, but this is something I have to figure out on my own. Yes I still love your brother and want nothing more than to get back together with him. The problem isn't the lack of love, Mer. It's the trust factor. I have to trust he's not going to break my heart again. I couldn't recover from that. You need to let me figure out what I'm going to do on my own," Kimberly said.

Meredith nodded her head. She agreed with Kimberly, but she doubted she'd be able to stay quiet. Especially if her brother asked her for advice. "I just want to help anyway I can. I'm here for both of you, you know that," Meredith said. The women shared a hug and Kim headed into the dojo while Meredith went back to her apartment.

She entered and found Tommy sitting on the couch, starting at the sleeping baby in the car seat.

"She's not going to get away, you know. She's a bit too small for that," Meredith said, smiling.

"I just can't believe that she's my daughter. I keep thinking I'm dreaming. I feel like you're going to come into my room like when we were kids and dump water on my face," he said. Rocky poked his head out of the kitchen.

"Meri poured water on your head? And she lived," he asked, laughing.

"I never did that," Meredith said, trying to keep a straight face.

"You did, too. It was payback for spying on you and Jason," Tommy said.

"OK. I did pour water on you, but you were really annoying me with the spying on me and Jason AND the, apparently, vivid dreams you were having about Kimberly. I'm amazed mom and dad never heard you. I had to shut you up somehow," Meredith said.

Tommy turned three shades of red and Meredith smiled at her brother.

"Boy, I had a bigger family and I never had that happen to me. Guess my siblings liked me better than Meri liked you," Rocky said.

The three smiled and Rocky went back into the kitchen. Meredith followed after him to see what he was fixing.

Rocky was adding some diced tomatoes to chili that was on the stove."It smells wonderful," Meredith said, sniffing the pot. She reached up and gave him a kiss as he added the tomatoes to the pot.

"Thank you," he said, smiling at his wife.

Meredith was getting some water from the fridge when she heard Siobhan wake.

She set the glass on the counter and went to stand in the living room, Rocky right behind her.

Tommy stared at the car seat, trying to figure out how to get the crying, squirming baby free.

Rocky smiled and went to show Tommy how to undo the straps. Tommy watched Rocky as he unhooked the straps and took the baby out of the seat. He held the baby out to him and, hesitantly, Tommy took his daughter in his arms. He looked at his sister and brother-in-law, a look of fear on his face."Tommy, sit," Meredith said.

Tommy did as he was told. Siobhan settled down and nestled into her father's arms, causing Tommy to relax.

Meredith and Rocky smiled at the scene.

"I think you might want to change her diaper and give her a bottle," Meredith said. Tommy looked around the room, trying to decide how he would do what he had to. Rocky took the diaper bag off the floor and set it next to the chair Tommy was sitting. "You take the mat out of the diaper bag if you don't have a changing table and place the baby on it. Then you simply change the diaper," Rocky said.

Tommy, using one hand, reached into the bag and pulled the mat out. He placed Siobhan down and reached back in the bag to get a diaper and the container of wipes.

Tommy stared at the number of snaps on the outfit and was trying to figure out what to do when Meredith offered some advice."The snaps around the legs should be unfastened, then you can get to the diaper," she said.

Soon, Tommy was in the groove. When Kimberly returned a few hours later, Tommy was a natural. He'd fed, changed and put his daughter to sleep. She was sleeping in her car seat when Kimberly arrived to pick her up.

Tommy carried Siobhan to Kimberly's car and fastened the seat in the car. He turned around and caught Kimberly smiling.

"Will you bring her by my place tomorrow? I'd like to spend all the time I can with her," Tommy said."I think I can do that. I'll call you before we come just in case you're busy," she said.

"I can afford to miss a few classes. I'm nearly done with this whole doctorate thing and I've got an internship lined up. The next few weeks are pretty easy for me considering my dissertation has already been written and approved. I've earned my PhD," Tommy said.

"That's great! We'll have to make sure that we're at your graduation ceremony," Kim said.

"That would be great. So, I'll see you tomorrow," Tommy said."Yeah. Tomorrow," she said.

"Thanks, Kim. This means so much to me," Tommy said.

"Despite how things are between us, you and Siobhan deserve to know each other. I would never deprive you of that," she said.

She got in the car before she revealed her true feelings and Tommy watched them pull away. He jogged back to his sister's place and went back inside. Meredith was washing the bottles Siobhan used in the sink and Rocky was on the phone.

"Thanks for the help, sis. I think I can handle things on my own now," he said.

"I'm glad because I have a feeling this could turn out to be like that time Kimberly left for Florida and you wouldn't leave Rocky and I alone. I know we have plenty of space here, but you got your own house so you wouldn't have to live with us," Meredith reminded him.

"I remember," Tommy said. He picked up his jacket off the back of the stool at the counter and kissed the top of his sister's head. "I'm having Kim and Siobhan over tomorrow, so I'm going to make sure the house is presentable," Tommy said.

"I don't see why it wouldn't be. You're always here," Rocky called from the living room.

"See you, Rocko. Bye, sis," Tommy said as he headed out the door and down the stairs.

He and Kimberly fell into a normal pattern. They spent the majority of the next several months getting to know each other again and building a safe environment for their daughter.

Tommy was getting ready for his dinner engagement with Dr. Anton Mercer when he got a phone call.

"Tommy, can you get Siobhan from daycare," Jason asked.

"Sure," Tommy said.

"I was going to pick her up since Kim knew you had that important meeting regarding your internship and she didn't want to mess that up for you. She wanted to call Meri, but she didn't answer," Jason said.

"Rocky went to San Francisco to look at a project his firm might do since Meri's working a 24-hour shift today. She started at 7. It was a last minute thing. I can reschedule my dinner with Dr. Mercer. He'll understand," Tommy said. "Good luck. Call me later, Daddy," Tommy added, ending the call.

He grabbed his keys and jumped in his Jeep. He placed a call to Dr. Mercer as he headed to the daycare.

"Dr. Mercer," Anton said.

"Dr. Mercer, sir. This is Thomas Oliver. I need to reschedule the dinner we had this evening. Something came up with my daughter and I need to be with her," Tommy said.

"Thomas, I didn't realize you had a family," Dr. Mercer said."I didn't know either, sir, until three months ago, but I would be lost without her," Tommy said, pulling into the daycare center lot.

"I understand, son. I'll be glad to see you tomorrow or the day after. If we go any later I'm afraid I won't be able to discuss the opportunity with you. I need to have the names on the list by Friday," Dr. Mercer said.

"Tomorrow would be fine. Same time as today," Tommy asked."That's fine. I'll see you there, Dr. Oliver," Dr. Mercer said, ending the call.

Tommy smiled slightly at hearing Dr. Mercer call him doctor. Tommy didn't expect that slight change in title would affect him, but it did.

He walked into the daycare center to retrieve his daughter. He clipped her into her seat and headed for home.

When he arrived, he fed her and watched her fall asleep. He carried the still sleeping baby to her room and set her in the crib. He called Kim and left a message on her voicemail that he had Siobhan and she could come and get her or let her spend the night. Tommy knew she would call and let him know what she wanted to do.

He had turned on the baby monitor in the kitchen and was fixing a sandwich when his cell rang.

"Hey, you a daddy," Tommy asked.

"Yeah. It was awesome. Katherine was wonderful. We have a little girl, too," Jason said, the pride showing in his voice.

"Well, what's her name," Tommy asked.

"Chloe Elizabeth Scott. She weighs 7 pounds, 3 ounces and is 21 inches long. She's absolutely beautiful," Jason said.

"That's great. Siobhan will have a playmate. Let me know if you need anything. Hug Kat for me," Tommy said before ending the call.

He smiled at his friends happiness. Jason had been in love with Kat for a while, but he'd been temporarily misled by false feelings for Meredith. While Jason and Meri had dated and been good together, seeing her with Rocky and Jason with Kat made Tommy see that they were with the people they belonged.

He went into the living room and turned on ESPN. He was halfway through his sandwich when there was a knock on the door.

He got up and opened the door, figuring it was Kimberly. Standing there on his front porch under the light was Kimberly. Even in her scrubs she was beautiful.

She came inside and started apologizing."I'm so sorry. I hope I didn't ruin anything for you," she said.

"Kim, it's fine. I'm having that dinner meeting with Anton tomorrow night. I still have a shot at the internship, so relax," he said.

Kimberly sat down on the couch.

"You look beat," he said.

"We had a critical patient. Little girl born at 28 weeks. Don't know what's going to happen to her. Makes me really glad that I had such a great pregnancy and delivery with Siobhan. I've seen what can happen and it's scary," she said.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there to help you through it," Tommy said, sitting next to her on the couch.

"Well, that's in the past and I think we're at a point were we're civil with each other," she said.

"I think we're more than just civil with each other, Kim," Tommy said, staring at her.

"You're right," she said, never taking her eyes off of him.

Tommy leaned down and gave Kim a quick, testing-the-waters-kind of kiss. He pulled back and saw her smiling before he went back for another. This time, longer and with all the feeling he had for her. They were interrupted by Siobhan's loud cry from the baby monitor.

The couple broke apart, shocked by what happened and neither knowing what to say."I'll go get her. Will you make her a bottle," Kim asked.

"Sure," Tommy said as he watched Kim jump off the couch and head to Siobhan's room.

He made his way to the kitchen and made the bottle.

Kimberly was sitting in the rocking chair in the living room when he brought the bottle out of the kitchen. He handed it to her and she gave it to Siobhan. Neither said anything about what had happened. They were both avoiding it as much as possible.

"Do you want to leave her here tonight or are you taking her home," Tommy asked.

"I'll feed her and take her home," she said. Tommy went back in the kitchen and did the few dishes he had in the sink and went back in the living room. Kimberly was putting Siobhan in her coat."Will you call as soon as your meeting with Dr. Mercer is finished," she asked.

"Of course," he held the door for her. She turned back around and reached up on her tip toes and gave him another kiss, this one on the cheek.

Tommy smiled at her as she turned and went to her car. She drove off before he was really sure of what had happened. He closed the door and leaned against it. He hoped Kim knew how he felt by the kiss. He thought she felt the same, judging by her reaction to the kiss.

He went upstairs to go to bed, thinking about what had happened between him and Kimberly in the living room.

Kimberly drove the five minutes to her house thinking about kissing Tommy. She'd been dying to do it since he came back into her life. Seeing him with their daughter made her heart ache for him to be let back into her life as more than just Siobhan's father.

She took her daughter inside and changed her into her pajamas. She fed her another bottle and put her in her crib for, what she hoped, was the rest of the night. Kim stepped into the shower and thought about that kiss. Even thought she had been hurt by the words Tommy had said, she now understood why he had done it. Since she'd been spending all this time with him, no one had tried to harm her or Siobhan. Andros said the threat was still out there, but the evil energy wasn't focused around them at this time and Kimberly felt that this new friendship with Tommy was keeping the evil away. She hoped she didn't have anything to worry about any crawled into bed, trying to decide if she should tell Tommy how she felt or if she should let things progress as they were. She tossed and turned for several hours before deciding she wasn't going to try to push things. She was going to take her time and make sure this was the same Tommy Oliver she'd fallen in love with in high school. The same one she'd fought along side for so many years. Satisfied, she went to sleep.

Tommy sat at the table in the restaurant, waiting for Anton Mercer. Tommy was hoping he'd be offered one of the positions with Mercer. Mercer was the foremost paleontologists in the world and working with him would be a coup.

Anton walked into the restaurant and approached Tommy's table. Tommy stood and greeted the older man with a hand shake."Dr. Oliver. I'm going to make this quick. I want to offer you a position with my company," he said. Tommy was shocked. He hadn't expected an offer within the first five minutes.

"Thank you, sir. I'm honored," Tommy said.

"The position is actually a research position. I know you've done a few field digs and the last one you were in charge of did find a lot of wonderful specimens. I want you to head up my lab that is working with dinosaur DNA and modern technology. The projects are top-secret and you would find out about them upon your arrival at the site," Dr. Mercer said.

Tommy listened intently to Dr. Mercer as he outlined the position. It was exactly what Tommy wanted and would help him get to the top of his field. He was just about to tell Dr. Mercer he'd accept the position when he asked where it was located.

"Oh, my lab is located on an island off the coast of New Zealand. You'd be living there for nine months, which is the term of the assignment," Dr. Mercer said. Finding out he'd be halfway around the world from his daughter and Kimberly gave him pause.

"When do you need my answer," Tommy asked.

"By Friday. I realize this is short notice, but I have to have the paperwork submitted to the authorities both here, New Zealand and Australia. That takes time and I want this project to begin in 10 weeks. Can you give me an answer by Friday," Dr. Mercer asked.

Tommy swallowed, finding his mouth suddenly dry."I can let you know yes or no by Friday, sir," Tommy said. Dr. Mercer stood and shook Tommy's hand before heading out of the restaurant. Tommy flopped back in his chair, totally unsure of what just happened and of what he was going to do. He noticed Dr. Mercer had left money on the table to pay the tab, so he picked up his briefcase and headed out of the restaurant.

He called his sister."Meri, do you have some time to talk to me at your place? I have big news and need some help with it," he said.

"Yeah, come on by. Rocky's out with Adam, but he'll be home by 10. Just use your key and come in," she said.

He steered his Jeep toward his sister's apartment, totally unsure of what he was going to do about this job offer.

***What's Tommy going to do about this job offer? What's Kimberly going to say? What is Meredith going to tell her brother? How is this going to change the dynamic between Meredith, Tommy and Kimberly?*** -mereditholiver


	36. Gone

DISCLAIMER: Read previous chapters. I own Meredith.

GONE

Tommy knocked on the door to his sister and Rocky's apartment. Rocky opened the door and Tommy followed him inside. "What's up, bro," Rocky asked.

"I need to talk about something. You willing to listen," Tommy asked, tossing his jacket on the bench by the front door.

"Sure. Meri's talking to my mom. You want something to drink," Rocky asked.

"I need a beer," he said.

Rocky took three out of the fridge and handed one to his friend. Meredith came down the stairs to meet the guys in the kitchen. Rocky handed her the extra beer. "Wow, this must be big," Meredith said, opening the bottle and taking a drink.

"Yep," Tommy said, drinking his also. The three went into the living room. Meredith sat on the couch and turned to face her brother. Rocky sat next to Meredith on the chaise part of the sofa.

"OK, bro, spill it," Meredith said. Tommy took another long drink from his beer and swallowed. He looked at his sister and told her all about his evening.

"Dr. Mercer offered me a position as his assistant. He wants me to run his private lab on his island," Tommy said.

"Tommy, that's awesome," Meredith said, excitement for her brother clear.

"Yeah, but the island is off the coast of New Zealand. I'd be there for nine months," Tommy said. Meredith's shoulders dropped.

"Nine months? Away from Siobhan and Kimberly…me. That's kind of rough," Meredith said.

"That does sound like a long time, but you'd get to come home for a few weeks, right," Rocky said, trying to cheer everyone up.

"I guess I'd get a few weeks off in the middle, but it's a research position. If the research is taking off before my break, I won't be able to leave. It's possible I won't see anyone until the nine months are over," he said.

"Could we come to see you," Meredith asked.

"I don't know. Maybe. Again it's all dependant upon the way the research is going at that particular time. I can't be certain I'd be able to visit with anyone if that happens," Tommy said. "Is this a big deal," Meredith asked. She didn't understand anything about Tommy's career and all that entailed.

"Yeah. Especially since I'd be Mercer's assistant when the project is finished which means I'd be a VP in his company," Tommy said.

"What exactly is his company," Rocky asked.

"It's a research company that also sponsors digs. Some of the biggest finds of late have been found by Anton and his selected group of paleontologists. It's a prestige thing in my field," Tommy said.

"What if you don't take the position," Meredith asked. "I could teach high school," Tommy said, finishing his beer and giving his sister a sheepish smile.

"Basically if you want to work as a paleontologist you have to hook up with one of those companies? What about teaching at a university," Meredith asked.

"No matter how you look at it, I have to do field work even if I decide to stay in the classroom. I could probably get a position that was closer to home. Maybe a director for an exhibit at a museum," Tommy said.

"Is this something you want to do," Meredith asked.

"Yeah, but my relationship with Kim is just getting back to where we might actually have a shot at being together and raising our daughter together. I don't know what to do," Tommy said.

"Ask Kim," Meredith said. "Ask her what exactly? I want to know if she wants to try again. If she does, I'd give up the chance to work for Mercer. I'd stay behind and build a life with her and teach high school," Tommy said.

"So tell her that," she said. Tommy looked at his sister and gave her a look. "See if she is willing to move forward with the relationship. See if she's willing to get back together. If she is, then you have your answer. If she isn't sure, then maybe you need to put some physical space between the two of you. Maybe those nine months would be the perfect time for you two to see if you really want to be together and be a family. Maybe that's what you guys need," Meredith said. "We just spent a year apart, Meri and look what happened," Tommy pointed out. "That was because you were trying to protect her," Meredith said.

"Then there is still the threat to Kim. If I decide to take this job, who's going to protect my family? That's my job," he said.

"Tommy, you know that Jason and I will look out for Kim and Siobhan. Plus there's how many other former rangers within driving distance. She'd be protected whether she knows it or not," Rocky said.

"No. No. I won't have you guys doing that. No, I'm going to go to Kim's right now and tell her I want to be with her and I'll call Anton in the morning and tell him I'm not taking the position," Tommy said. "

She's not going to like that," Meredith said.

"You think so," Tommy asked. Meredith shot her brother a knowing look. Tommy hung his head. "Well, I'm going to try," he said.

"Well, don't let the Oliver pride get in the way," Rocky said.

"What are you talking about," Tommy asked.

"You have a tendency to let your pride do the talking. I'm just telling you not to let that get in the way of what you and Kimberly have to do and that's provide a healthy environment for your daughter," Rocky said. The siblings stared at Rocky. Tommy got off the sofa and walked toward the door.

"I'm going to Kim's. I'm going to tell her I want to be with her and we have to move in that direction," he said.

"And if she shoots you down because you've given her an ultimatum, you're going to go to island," Meredith said. Tommy just smiled and walked out the door. Meredith was left sitting on the couch not knowing what he was going to do.

"I just hope it goes OK," she said to Rocky.

"It will be fine if he doesn't take your advise and go off to the island if she says no," he said. "What do you mean," she asked her husband.

"I don't think you can push those two into something before they're ready. Kimberly was hurt and she's probably just now starting to trust Tommy again. Forcing her to make a decision isn't a good way to build a relationship. If he tells her 'get back together or I'm leaving for nine months' isn't going to help. She's going to resent him and that's the exact opposite of what you want him to do," Rocky said.

"So I should do what then," she asked her husband.

"Stay out of it. I know Tommy and you share pretty much everything and you're Kim's best friend, but you need to let them live their own lives. I love you, but sometimes you think you can save the world," Rocky said.

"I just want Tommy to be happy," Meredith said.

"I know, but you can't keep fixing things for him. If this blows up in his face, who's he going to turn to? You. He's either going to hang onto you for dear life or he's going to hate you for ruining his life. I love you're brother, but I didn't marry him. I married you," Rocky said, wrapping his arms around his wife.

Meredith got very quiet as she digested his words. She nodded her head and Rocky took it as agreement with his statements. They put their bottles in the recycling box and went upstairs to bed.

Tommy drove to Kim's house determined to put his family back together. He was going to tell Kimberly that he wanted her back; that he wanted to have a family with her and Siobhan and any other children they were blessed with. She was it for him and she needed to know that. He parked in the driveway and knocked softly on the door. Kimberly answered it wearing a pink bathrobe and carrying a mug of what smelled like hot chocolate. "Still drinking that when you're stressed," he asked, smiling at her as he entered the living room.

"You know me too well," she said as she shut the door behind him. "I thought you were going to call."

"I have something big to talk to you about," he said. "OK. Let's go in the living room," she said. Tommy followed her and sat in a chair next to the sofa. Kim placed her mug on the coffee table and directed her attention to Tommy. "What's up," she asked.

"I love you. I've never stopped and, although I know I hurt you, I want to be back with you. It's the only thing I can think about. I want to come home from work and have dinner with you and Siobhan. I want to give her a bath and put her to bed and know that you're waiting for me in our room; that she won't be moving to your house the next night. I want to be with you. I want to marry you," he said.

Kimberly was shocked by his admission. She knew he still loved her because she still loved him. She just wasn't prepared for him to confess to wanting to marry her. She got up from the couch and started pacing the floor. Tommy turned in the chair to follow her pacing. She thought about the last few months and how wonderful they had been. Tommy had been a wonderful father to his daughter and had given Kimberly the space she needed. He showed the proper amount of concern regarding her and their daughter. She was slowly letting her guard down with him, but she wasn't sure she was ready for a step as big as marriage just yet. She wasn't even sure she was ready for them to move in together. She had spoken with Andros and they were still trying to isolate the threat to her and Siobhan, but since Tommy was around most of the time, nothing even remotely suspicious had happened. Still, she wasn't ready to let her guard down and let him own her heart all the way.

"Tommy, I love you and I do see us getting married in the future, but this is just a bit too sudden for me," she said, locking eyes with him. She saw his spirit crack as she said those words. The hopeful expression he'd had on his face, changed. He looked at the floor, then back at her.

"You love me, but you don't want to marry me now. Why," he asked.

"I'm still trying to get over what happened. I know why you did it, OK. I get that. I'm just having a hard time getting those words out of my head. Especially the part about Jason and me. You know I wouldn't have done that unless I was under a spell, but you still threw it in my face. I want to marry you so badly. I want to have a family with you, but I'm not there yet, Tommy," she said, tears filling her eyes, her voice cracking.

Tommy was quiet for a minute. His silence scared Kimberly. She was afraid he'd walk out of the door and not return. She was afraid he'd walk out of her life, only to return for visits with his daughter. She didn't know if she could handle that after having him back in her life. "Anton offered me a position on his island doing research. I'd be his assistant and in charge of all research on the island," he said in a monotone.

"That's wonderful," Kim said, not knowing the bombshell he was going to drop on them.

"It's a nine month position on the island. I'd live there and, provided research didn't get in the way, I'd be able to come home for a few weeks during that time. It's also off the coast of New Zealand," Tommy said. It took a good ten seconds after Tommy finished speaking before the words actually hit her. Tommy was going away for nine months to New Zealand and he might not get to come home for planned breaks.

"I was planning on turning it down so I could build a future with you, but I'm thinking maybe we should have some physical distance between us. We can talk, write, email and video conference while I'm away so I can keep up with Siobhan's development," he said. He got up off the couch and walked toward the front door.

"I'll come back for Siobhan's first birthday and stay for a few days. I'll get you the contact information and let you know before I leave. I love you, but I can't put my life on hold because you say you're eventually going to want to marry me. I hate like hell that this means leaving my daughter, but since you had my sister tell me about her existence, then there's nothing I can do. Rocky and Jason will watch you and Siobhan, just in case this threat decides to come after you in my absence," he said. He walked toward her and kissed her, hoping he'd let her know how passionately he loved her and wanted her.

He turned and went to Siobhan's room. "I love you more than my life Siobhan, but I need to think. I love you mom and want to be with you both, but she doesn't want that right now and the pain is too great. I'll always be with you and I'll see you soon," he whispered to his sleeping angel. He kissed the top of her head and then kissed his fingertips and placed them over her heart. Two tears slid off his face and landed on her blankets. He sniffed and headed out of her room, passing Kimberly in the hall.

She was openly sobbing, feeling like her heart had, again, been ripped out of her chest. Seeing Tommy say that to their daughter made her want to go after him, but hearing the click of the door, told her it was over. She ran to her bedroom and watched Tommy head to his car. She saw him turn around and catch her eye from the ground. He blew a kiss to her window and hopped in his car and drove away. She collapsed on her bed and began to cry.

***Is Tommy going to leave? Is Kimberly going to try to stop him? Anyone hearing a big 'I told you so' coming? You shall soon see.*** -mereditholiver


	37. Bye

DISCLAIMER: Same as previous. I own Meredith.

BYE

Tommy drove back to his house. He had a million things to do if he was going to go to the island.  
>He figured he'd find someone to rent his house. He knew Jason and Rocky would keep an eye on the place, just like they'd look after Kimberly and their daughter.<br>He called his sister when he got home and started packing.  
>"Hey, bro," she said.<br>"I'm going, Meri," he said.  
>"WHAT," she screamed.<br>"I'm heading to the island so I can further my career. I need a job and this is going to help me provide a future for my daughter. I'll let you know before I leave," he said.  
>"Are you sure, Tommy," Meredith asked.<br>"Yeah. Besides, didn't you tell me that if she didn't agree I should go off to the island," Tommy asked.  
>"I remember saying that, but I thought she'd say yes," Meredith said.<br>"Well, I'm going. I'm going to start packing. I'll call you tomorrow after I finalize the details with Anton," Tommy said, hanging up the phone.

Meredith stared at the phone in disbelief.  
>She couldn't grasp the fact that not only had Kimberly said she wasn't going to marry him right now, but that he'd be gone for nine months. Nine months she'd have to go without seeing the closest friend she had, after her husband.<br>"What's the matter, babe," Rocky asked. "Who was that."  
>"Tommy," she said, trying to form a sentence.<br>"Oh, did his meeting with Kimberly go well," Rocky asked as he continued folding the laundry.  
>"He's heading off to the island. He's taking the position with Dr. Mercer," she said, staring off into space.<br>Rocky stopped folding and sat down next to Meredith.  
>"What happened," he asked,<br>"I can only assume that she said she wasn't going to marry him and he decided to take Mercer up on the job offer. I can't believe it," Meredith said.  
>"You have to trust Tommy that he knows what he's doing," Rocky said to his wife.<br>She shrugged her shoulders. "Well, I hope so. Maybe this little time apart will help their relationship," Meredith said, taking the basket of clothes from her husband and heading upstairs to the bedrooms.

Tommy called Anton first thing in the morning and told him he'd take the position. Anton asked if he could start Monday, five days away, and Tommy assured him he'd be on the first flight Sunday night to bring him to the island.  
>He started packing everything he'd need for the trip and wondering if there would be a store to pick up extras, should he run out.<br>He called Meredith and invited her and Rocky over Friday for his farewell dinner.  
>When his sister and brother-in-law arrived he was prepared for the onslaught he'd get from Meri.<br>"What in the world is going on? I called you several times in the last few days and you only call me back yesterday to invite us over and don't tell me anything. Tommy, you're killing me here," Meredith said.  
>"I'm sorry, sis, but I had some stuff to sort out. You know how mom and dad had been on their round-the-world cruise in honor of dad's semi-retirement? Well, they didn't know about Siobhan. I figured I should probably tell them and give them a chance to get used to the idea and the fact that I'm leaving. I wanted to make sure they got to spend some time with Siobhan while I'm away. You're going to have to make sure that happens for me," Tommy said.<br>"Of course, but why are you leaving now," she questioned.  
>"I need to. I'm hoping that what ever is after Kimberly will think that I don't want anything to do with her any longer and leave them alone. Hopefully that will give Andros and Billy time to figure out exactly who or what is after them. I need to get away. You and Rocky have your life and I've got to work on one for myself. That's going to start with my career," Tommy said.<br>Meredith looked at her brother. For the first time in their relationship, she couldn't tell what he was thinking or even what he was feeling. This whole thing with Kimberly had shut her brother down and she hated it.  
>"Are you sure this is a good idea," she asked<br>"Yeah, I think so. If not, I'll be home in nine months. It's not a year," he said, giving her a one-sided smile.  
>The three sat down for dinner and made small talk. Tommy asked Rocky to look out for his house and see if there was someone who wanted to rent it from him until he returned.<br>Rocky said he'd look into it, but he'd make sure the house was taken care of while he was away.  
>Tommy produced a document. It allowed Meredith to make payments from his accounts for things regarding the house and other bills that would be incurred while he was away.<br>"My living situation on the island and all my meals and such are paid for while I'm there. I'll also be making a salary that Anton said is to help with expenses that will incur while I'm away. I've set up an account for that money to go into and you will be able to use that money to pay for things that might need to be taken care of while I'm away. The utilities and such come directly out of the account, but you'll see the bills before the money comes out. The only thing that won't be that way is the mortgage. It will just get pulled out of my account. If anything needs to be fixed or if Kim and Siobhan need anything, use this to get them what they need," Tommy said.  
>Staring at the paper, Meredith felt like she was making arrangements for her brother's death.<br>"Tommy this feels like your final wishes," Meredith said.  
>"I have a will and everything for that. You never know what can happen. Meri, I have every intention of coming back to you and Siobhan and Kim, but I have to be prepared," he said.<br>"What ever you want us to do, Tommy, we'll do it," Rocky said.  
>The three continued talking. When Tommy saw the clock he realized he needed to get some sleep.<br>"I'm calling Kim in the morning," Tommy said, answering his sister's unasked question.  
>Meredith hugged her brother, feeling a deep sense of loss in what was happening.<br>"You sure you don't want us to take you to the airport," Rocky asked.  
>"I can only handle one good-bye with Meredith. I'll be fine. I'll call or email when I get there. I love you, little bit. Take care of her, Rocky. Take care of all my girls," Tommy said, hugging Rocky.<br>Meredith gave Tommy one last hug. "I love you, too. Get back soon, OK. I'm going to miss you like crazy," she said, kissing him on the cheek.  
>"Me, too," he said, kissing the top of her head.<br>Rocky shook Tommy's hand and headed out the door to their car. Tommy waved at his family as they pulled out of his driveway and went back inside to finish his preparations.  
>He collapsed on his bed, totally exhausted and beginning to dread what was going to happen in the next two days.<br>He got up the next morning and did his usual morning routine. He was meeting his parents for a good-bye breakfast, so he showered and headed out to meet them.  
>He called Kimberly on the way, fully intending to tell her that he was leaving and stopping by to see his daughter. He didn't get an answer, so he left a message. "Kim, it's me. I'm leaving at 9 Sunday morning. I have a flight to New Zealand that leaves LAX at 11:30 in the morning, tomorrow. I just wanted to know if I could see Siobhan before I left. If I don't see her, I'll send instructions on video chatting. I'll call with a number to contact me if there is an emergency. You have my email. That will stay the same. I love you both more than anything. I'll let you know when my first break is so we can coordinate the visit. Take care of yourself. Tell Siobhan that her daddy loves her," Tommy said, before ending the call. He was afraid he was going to start crying.<br>He endured the painful breakfast with his parents, wondering if his mother would ever stop crying. While he missed Meredith, he was glad she wasn't there because if she was crying, he wouldn't have been able to leave town. He hugged his parents and promised to call.  
>"I'm proud of you son. This is a wonderful opportunity. Take care of yourself," his father said.<br>He hugged both of his parents and went back to his house to finish packing. He kept waiting to see if he'd hear from Kimberly.  
>When he went to bed that night, he was heartbroken. He knew he should go to Kim's house to see his daughter, but didn't think force was a good tactic. He went to bed exhausted, yet excited for this opportunity.<p>

He went for his final run around the trails in his backyard and threw a last load into the washing machine. He knew if he left dishes or dirty clothes for Meredith to clean up, she'd never let him hear the end of it.  
>He set about finishing his chores and sending a quick email to Meredith detailing his phone number and contact info in case of an emergency. He also sent flight details so she could keep track. He asked her to forward the information to Kimberly, just in case he didn't get to talk to her.<br>As the clock approached 9, Tommy felt he was ready for the trip. He dragged his luggage down the steps and placed them by the front door.  
>Tommy had packed everything he could think of, in three suitcases and a duffle bag. This meant he'd probably forgotten something important.<br>He was about to head out of his room when the picture on his nightstand caught his eye. It was a picture of him with his daughter that Meredith had taken a few weeks ago. He took the photo out of the frame and slipped it into his pocket.  
>He heard the honking of the airport shuttle and went downstairs with his bags. He surveyed one last time before taking his keys to the Jeep and putting them in the planter. Meredith or Rocky would be by later to check on the house and remove the keys from the pot. They promised they'd keep the house it great shape while he was gone. Tommy figured they'd live there for a few weeks, just so no one knew he wasn't home.<br>He got into the van and the driver headed toward the airport.

Ten minutes later, Kimberly was beating on the front door of Tommy's house. She loved the house Tommy had bought a year ago and was ready to tell him she wanted to live together and plan a wedding. OF course that couldn't happen until she'd confessed how she felt and he'd given up his position with Dr. Mercer.  
>She continued knocking on the door, totally ready to talk him out of leaving. She sat down on the porch swing and pulled out her phone. She called Jason.<br>"Hey, bro. Did Tommy have anything planned today," Kim asked.  
>"Well, not that I know of. Why," he asked.<br>"I haven't heard from him. I took Siobhan to the mountains for a few days to think about Tommy and our relationship. I just got back into town and he's not here. You don't know where he might be," she asked.  
>"Did you call Meri," Jason asked.<br>"Well, I know she was working the entire weekend and I figured she was sleeping, so I didn't want to wake her. Think he's with Rocky," she asked.  
>"Probably. You know how they are. I haven't seen him since he stopped by after Chloe was born. I guess that was Wednesday," Jason said.<br>"I'll call Rocky. See you, Jase," she said, ending the call.  
>She noticed the voice mail icon on her phone, but figured it was probably work wanting something. She'd left her phone in her car during the time she and Siobhan were away.<br>"Hello," Rocky said.  
>"Sorry, did I wake you," Kim asked.<br>"No, Meri just left for work and I was going to go downstairs to workout. What's wrong, Kim? Did something happen," Rocky asked.  
>"No. I'm actually looking for Tommy. I came by his house this morning and he's not here. I thought he might be with you and Meri," Kim said.<br>"Tommy didn't call you," Rocky asked.  
>"I don't know. I was away for the weekend and just got back to town. Siobhan's sleeping in the car seat and I knocked on Tommy's door, but he's not here. His Jeep isn't in the driveway. I thought he might have it in the garage, that's why I knocked. He didn't answer the phone when I called either," she said.<br>"Kim, Tommy told Meri and I Friday night that he was calling you to tell you he was leaving this morning for the island job. He accepted it and starts there tomorrow. He wanted to see Siobhan before he left, but I guess that didn't happen," Rocky said.  
>"What do you mean, he left," Kim asked.<br>"Whatever happened between you and him the other night convinced him he needed to go to the island. He told Meri and I before he talked to you that he wasn't going. Then he called Meri and told her he was leaving. We had dinner with him Friday night before he left. I'm sorry I had to tell you this stuff. Look, Meri's supposed to be finished with her shift around 7 tonight. Why don't you bring Siobhan and come by for dinner. Tommy's flight takes like 12 hours, so we can tell you what we know," Rocky suggested.  
>Kim was speechless. She knew Tommy was heartbroken when he left, but she didn't think he'd do something this rash to get over the hurt.<br>"Yeah, we'll be there," Kim said and ended the call. She didn't know what else to say.  
>She walked back to the car, relieved that Siobhan was still asleep.<br>She looked at the house. Everything she'd been thinking about this weekend wasn't going to happen. At least not in the next few months. She remembered Tommy saying he'd back for Siobhan's birthday, so, despite the fact that she wasn't happy with the situation, she was going to focus on that. She was determined to tell him the first time she talked to him that she wanted to marry him. All the doubts she'd had, disappeared when she found out he had left.  
>She started the car and headed to her house. She would get as much information as possible from Meredith and Rocky during dinner that night.<p>

"I can't believe that he just left," Kim said.  
>"He called you, you just didn't check the message until it was too late," Meredith said, pouring coffee into Kim's cup.<br>"I know, but I still can't believe he's gone for nine months," she said.  
>Rocky came back into the dining room after loading the dishwasher. "He did say he'd come back for Siobhan's first birthday. That's in a few months," Rocky said.<br>"I know. I just can't believe that he left. Why would he do that? It's like he's running away," Kim said.  
>"Well, I kind of told Tommy you two might need some physical distance," Meredith said.<br>"You did WHAT," Kim said, raising her voice.  
>"I didn't know that the whole discussion you two had about your future would go so badly. I didn't think you'd tell him you weren't ready. I thought he'd tell you about the job and you'd tell him not to go and work on building a future. How was I to know that Tommy would pick THAT moment to be stubborn and not fight for you," Meredith said.<br>"God, Meri. I didn't want him to go. If you hadn't pushed him, he might have actually waited until he heard from me again. Is he going to call you when he gets to the island," she asked, clearly angered at her friend.  
>"He said he'd call when he arrived, if it wasn't too late here," Rocky said, sensing the tension.<br>"Would you get him to call me? I have to talk to him," Kim said.  
>"Meri will tell him," Rocky said.<br>"Can you watch Siobhan for me during class? Since Tommy's not around and Jason and Kat have their hands full with their new little one," Kim asked.  
>"Of course. Can I ask my parent's to come to dinner that night? They haven't met Siobhan yet and Tommy made me promise that I'd introduce them to her," Meredith asked.<br>"Yeah. I've been wanting to do that, but Tommy said you're parents were on vacation," Kim said.  
>"A cruise, but they're back. I'll call them in the morning and let them know," Meredith said.<br>Kimberly picked up her daughter and carried her to the door.  
>"I need to talk to Tommy, Meredith. Please," Kim said, as she turned and walked out the door.<br>Rocky closed the door behind Kim and stared at his wife.  
>"I told you to leave it alone," he said.<br>"I know you did, but I didn't think I was doing anything wrong," she said.

When Tommy called that night, Meredith told him to call Kimberly.  
>"She was really upset to find out that you'd left. She was even angry with me for letting it happen," Meredith said.<br>"I'll call her when it's morning there. This is an awesome facility, Mer. I can't believe I get to be in charge of the whole thing," Tommy said.  
>Meredith smiled at the happiness in Tommy's voice. Despite the reservations he'd had with being apart from Kim and his daughter, he was happy with the lab.<br>"OK. Be safe, bro. Talk to you later. Love you," she said.  
>"I love you, too," Tommy said. When he hung up the phone, he looked around the apartment he would be calling home for the next few months. He had already put Siobhan's picture on the table beside his bed.<br>The apartment was of open design with the bathroom and bedroom the only closed off space in the whole apartment. The big windows looked out on one side to the cliff the fell into the ocean and on the other side to the wilderness that was just beyond the small yard. Several of the other lab workers lived in a dorm located on the other end of the lab. Tommy being the only one with an apartment-style dorm. He was, after all, in charge of the place. He just prayed the work would be as rewarding as he hoped.  
>***Tommy went to the island. What are he and Kim going to talk about? What's going to happen to our favorite power couple? Next chapter holds some drama.*** -mereditholiver<p> 


	38. Coming Home?

DISCLAIMER: Please read previous chapters. I own Meredith.

COMING HOME?

The next few months flew by for Tommy, but crept by slowly for his loved ones back in California.

He'd received several letters from his sister. Mostly detailing what she and Rocky had done with the rest of the group, but Tommy also detected a bit of sadness in her letters. Sadness that wasn't just from him being away, but the fact that all their close friends had children. Adam and Tanya had Jasmine and were discussing adding a second to their family. Jason and Katherine had married shortly after Chloe was born and Kimberly and he had Siobhan.  
>Tommy knew Meredith and Rocky wanted children, but why they didn't have them wasn't something Tommy wanted to get discuss with either his sister or brother-in-law.<br>Tommy was getting excited. He'd just finished a crucial stage in his research and Anton had told him he would be able to spend three weeks back in California, just in time for Siobhan's first birthday. He couldn't wait. He hadn't told anyone about the length of the leave because he wanted to spend as much time with his daughter and Kimberly as possible.  
>Despite the distance, Kimberly had told Tommy that she wanted to be with him. She wanted them to get married when he returned from the island.<br>A month into his job, Kimberly had moved into his house and sold her home that was closer to town. Despite the isolation of Tommy's house, Kim said she felt safer because no one knew she was staying there.  
>She admitted to Tommy in an email that she'd gotten three threatening notes that had she had given to Jason who'd given them to Billy for analysis. Billy didn't know who they were from, but did detect a slight amount of evil energy around them.<br>Jason and Rocky had promised they'd keep a closer eye on Kim and Siobhan. Tommy would feel better when he returned to California and could watch them himself, but his two best friends were doing a good job for him.  
>Tommy glanced over the final preparations for his trip home. He picked up the satellite phone and called his sister. He knew it would be late there, but he knew she wanted to hear from him.<br>"Hello," Rocky said.  
>"Hey, bro. Sorry to call so late," Tommy said.<br>"No problem. Meri's actually working the on-call shift tonight, so she's at the hospital. I can't sleep that well when she's not here. I'm just working on some plans for a new apartment building. How's life in the lab," Rocky said.  
>Tommy chuckled. "Well, the exciting stuff has ended for a while and I'm getting some time off. I'll be back in time for Siobhan's first birthday. I just wanted to know if Meri would be able to pick me up on the eighth. My flight gets in around 11 that night. Kind of late, I know, but I'd hate for Kim to drag Siobhan out that late or to have her get someone to watch her. Thought I could crash at your place for a few hours and then head over to the house," Tommy said.<br>"Well, I'll put it on the calendar. If Meri is working or on-call, I'll be able to get you," Rocky said.  
>"Thanks man. So how are things," Tommy asked.<br>"Still nothing on Kim's stalker. She's changed her cell phone and all her mail goes to a PO Box now. We've gotten several more letters that Billy has to analyze. Jason and I are clueless about who would do this to Kim. Andros doesn't have a clue. He even asked the Time Force guys if they knew anything, but they don't have any information. Well, none that they can give us anyway. We're grasping at straws trying to figure things out," Rocky said.  
>"How's everything else," he asked, not wanting to talk about the threat because then he didn't like his attitude after hearing about it. He told himself he'd be able to deal with it when he got home.<br>"Nothing much. Meri's busy with work. Jason got his new job," Rocky said.  
>"Physical Therapy wasn't working for him," Tommy asked, shocked that he didn't know his best friend had changed careers.<br>"He's been taking criminal justice classes for a while. He wasn't liking the fact that he saw people after something happened to them. He wanted to see if he could prevent things, so he started back to school. He's been hired with the sheriff's office and is working on becoming a detective. He seems to really like it, but Kat's scared to death," Rocky said.

"I'm sure. Well, I'll see you on the eighth. I'll send Meri an email so you have the specifics just in case it's you and not her. Tell her I said hello," Tommy said before ending the call.  
>He went back to finishing his work so he could get home to his love and daughter.<p>

"I can't believe I'm going to have to give those parents that devastating news about their child. Imagine a broken femur in a freak accident that leads you to discover cancer. Sometimes, I think I'm going to hate this job," Meredith told her fellow resident physician. She picked up the chart and went into the room that housed the thirteen-year-old boy and his anxious family.  
>After delivering the news, she went into the doctor's lounge to have herself a good cry and a cup of horrible coffee. She was pouring herself a mix of the toxic brew when Adam walked into the lounge.<br>"I'm going to stop you before you kill yourself with that stuff. Let's go to coffee kiosk. My treat," he said, taking his friend's arm.  
>"Don't you have patient's to see," Meredith asked while following him out the door.<br>"Nothing pressing. Besides, even residents get a break every now and then," he said, giving her a smile.  
>The two friends walked out of the hospital to the coffee kiosk on the corner. It was really just a small shop were you zipped in and got coffee and zipped out with your order. They prided themselves on fast service and the physician's at the hospital loved the place.<br>"One mocha espresso and one caramel latte," Adam said, placing the money on the counter. He was quickly given the two steaming drinks and handed Meredith hers before they walked back to the hospital.  
>"How did you know what I wanted today," she asked.<br>"I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing, but I knew you were upset. You usually get that when you're upset," he said.  
>"I don't know how Tanya will take that," she said, smiling and taking a drink.<br>"She's glad you're looking out for me," he said, holding the door open for her.  
>"I had to tell a family that their child's femur fracture was a blessing because the type of cancer he had was detected before it could do serious damage. Now the only question they face besides chemo versus radiation is do they amputate or not," she said, taking a drink.<br>"Wow. That's heavy stuff. When are you off duty," he asked.  
>"Four hours. Then I have the next 72 off and I'm not leaving the apartment," she said, smiling.<br>"Rocky won't know what hit him," Adam said, laughing.  
>Meredith turned ten shades of red. She shook her head at her friend when her phone went off. She read the text message. "Guy fell off a roof and has an open tibial fracture. It's on me. Thanks for the coffee. You and Tanya have to bring Jasmine and come over for dinner next week," she said, heading to the door.<br>"I'll give you a call," he said, as his phone went off also. He glanced at the reading.  
>"Well, I'm off to the ER as well. Someone thinks they have a patient having a heart attack. I'll walk with you," he said and the two headed off toward the ER to see their respective patients.<p>

Kimberly was busy getting the final preparations in place for Siobhan's first birthday. She knew Tommy was trying to get home for the party, but she was also planning for him to not be there, just in case something happened. She couldn't wait until this job was over and they were back together.  
>The phone rang.<br>"Hello," she said.  
>"Kimberly, it's Jane Oliver. What can I bring to Siobhan's party? I hate that you're doing everything on your own," she said.<br>"Mama Oliver, it's fine. I love doing whatever I can for Siobhan. I have the cake ordered and I decided to have someone cater it with sandwiches and salads. That way I don't have to spend any time in the kitchen. That's one skill I have yet to master," Kimberly said, laughing.  
>"Well, dear, if you think of anything let me know. I'll do anything for my granddaughter," Jane said.<br>"Thanks. Have you heard from Tommy? He called the other morning, but I was at work and missed it. Did he happen to call you and mention if he was coming home," she asked.  
>"I haven't talked to Tommy in two weeks. He doesn't usually call, he sends emails. He might have talked to Meredith. She's been on nights this week, so I haven't talked to her," Tommy's mom said.<br>"I'll call Meri. I'll let you know if I think of anything," Kim said.  
>She thanked Tommy's mom and hung up the phone.<br>She went out of the kitchen and headed upstairs. She was seriously thinking of redecorating Tommy's house, especially if she and Siobhan were going to call this place home. Most of her furniture was in storage because Tommy already had furniture.  
>As she entered the bedroom, she seriously decided that she had to redo the bedroom. The bedroom was lacking an actual headboard for the bed and the dressers didn't match. 'Yeah, definitely gotta update this boy's style,' she thought to herself as she got into bed.<p>

Meredith signed out her patients to the next set of residents coming on call and was relieved to head out to her car at the end of the shift. It had been a seriously long night and she was so glad that the shift was finished.  
>She unlocked her car door and got inside. She was heading for home when her phone rang.<br>"Hey, Kim," she said.  
>"Meri, have you heard when Tommy's coming home," Kim asked.<br>"I didn't get a date from him. He's supposed to email me, but I haven't gotten it from him," Meredith said.  
>"Will you let me know if you hear from him? I'd like to make sure that I'm able to get him from the airport and that he's going to be here for Siobhan's birthday," Kim asked.<br>"Yeah, no problem," Meredith said.  
>She pulled in front of her building and walked up the steps. She entered the apartment to find her husband standing in the kitchen with a cup of coffee. She dropped her stuff on the bench by the door and kissed her hubby.<br>"You got a minute or do you need to sleep" Rocky asked.  
>"What's up," she asked.<br>"Tommy's coming home on the eighth. We're supposed to pick him up. He wants to be home for Siobhan's birthday. He's emailing you the information," Rocky said.  
>"That's great. Kim was just asking me if I'd heard from him. He must be busy," she said.<br>"Well, get some sleep. I'm going to run these plans to the office and then come back and work on the books for the dojo. We'll go to lunch when you wake up," he said.  
>"Sounds good. Love you," she said, kissing him and heading upstairs to crash.<p>

Something didn't feel right. The whole island felt weird.  
>Tommy looked around the lab, hoping it would calm his nerves. It didn't work.<br>The uneasy feeling he was having had served him well as a ranger, but he hadn't felt it in his adult life. He'd almost ignored the feeling, but he couldn't let it go.  
>Deciding it was the fact that the island was nearly deserted, Tommy picked up his briefcase that held his important notes and such. He started heading out the door when he thought he heard something. 'Everyone left this morning for their mini-vacation,' he thought to himself. He was leaving in the morning, deciding to take an extra day at the island so he could finish the paperwork he would have when he returned. Finishing it now gave him a few extra days in California. He was taking all the time he could.<br>He locked the door to the lab when, again, he felt uneasy.  
>Shaking the feeling off, he walked down the quiet and darkened corridor. He had entered his apartment and glanced out the window when he thought he saw movement.<br>Glancing out the window, he decided his exhaustion was catching up to him and he was hallucinating.  
>He started to change his clothes, but something stopped him. Just then he saw what looked like a Tyrannodrone go past his window.<br>'That's impossible. I destroyed the ones I created,' he thought to himself.  
>Suddenly, one crashed through his bedroom window. Tommy leapt to the side, grabbed his briefcase off his desk and darted out the door. He threw open his front door and rushed out onto the island.<br>He ran toward the boat launch, thinking he'd head to the mainland.  
>The island shook. Having lived in California for a good many years, Tommy knew the island was having an earthquake.<br>He turned toward the beach, but saw a Tyrannodrone blocking his path. HE headed back into the woods.  
>He looked around his surroundings, trying to come up with a plan. The island producing small tremors at his feet, lending urgency to the plan.<br>He turned around and bumped right into a pair of Tyrannodrone.  
>He fought them off and took off running. He had no destination in mind, except getting away from the Tyrannodrone and getting off the island.<br>He fought a dozen Tyrannodrone before ending up at a cliff on the shaking island. The tremors were constant now.  
>Suddenly, Tommy saw fire lighting up the twilit sky. The cascading explosions were coming toward him. He looked around, but saw no way to get away.<br>Just as the island started sinking, Tommy leapt off the cliff. He gave no thought to what would happen when he hit the water, but he had to take the chance. He prepared himself for the brutal beating he'd take when he hit the water.  
>He wasn't prepared for the temperature of the water as he fell into it. He slipped under the inky black water as the island slipped beneath the waves, it's fires quashed by the water flooding the surface.<br>Tommy continued to sink lower and lower, making no effort to fight to the surface.

Back in California, Meredith was sleeping in the bed she shared with Rocky. He'd gone upstairs to change clothes. He quietly entered the bedroom and noticed Meredith was fighting the sheets in the form of a dream. Just then, Meredith sat straight up in the bed and screamed, "TOMMY!" Rocky rushed to his wife only to be met with her anguished and tear stained face.

At that same moment, Kimberly was having severe chest pain. The pain was so intense, she bent over in her kitchen and placed herself on the floor. Then a sudden emptiness that compounded the ache. "Tommy," she whispered before she started crying.  
>***Insert ominous music here. Well, what's going to happen? Have to wait for the next chapter. I know, you hate me right now.*** -mereditholiver<p> 


	39. Stages: Anger and Denial

DISCLAIMER: Please read previous. I own Meredith.

STAGES: ANGER AND DENIAL  
>Rocky felt helpless as Meredith cried and screamed in his embrace.<br>"Babe, what's wrong? What happened," he asked, pulling her body away from him so he could see her face.  
>"Some…things happ…happened to…To…mmy," she said in halting voice.<br>"What are you talking about? I talked to Tommy earlier and he was fine," Rocky said.  
>"Something has happened. I feel like I've been swallowed up. I feel almost empty," she said, looking at him.<br>"What makes you think it's related to Tommy," Rocky asked, smoothing his wife's hair.  
>"Do you have to ask," she said, snapping at him. She buried her head back in his shoulder, tears slipping down her cheeks.<br>Rocky held his wife, unsure what exactly had happened.

Kimberly couldn't breathe. The pain she felt wasn't just physical it was emotional. She felt like she'd been sucked into this black void where it was dark and cold. Like life had been completely sucked out of it. She knew, without question, that something had happened to Tommy.  
>Tears streaming down her face, she reached for her phone and called Meredith.<p>

"Hello," Rocky said when Meredith's phone rang. She was sitting on the bed, staring at the wall, not speaking. Silent tears streaming down her cheeks.  
>"Rocky, I need to talk to Meredith," Kim insisted.<br>"She can't talk right now. She's had some kind of dream that's scared her to death," Rocky said.  
>"Was it about Tommy," Kim asked, her heart filling with dread.<br>"Yes. Did something happen to you," Rocky asked, hoping against hope that Kimberly hadn't had the same feeling as his wife.  
>"I feel totally empty and the pain is intense," she said, proving Rocky's point.<br>"Meri woke up screaming and crying. She's insisting that something happened to Tommy," Rocky said.  
>"Well, I think something happened to him, too. Have you heard anything," she asked, trying to keep herself calm.<br>"I haven't heard anything. Do you really think something happened to Tommy," he asked Kim.  
>"Now that I know Meredith is feeling something, I do," Kimberly said, shuddering at the thought.<br>"My phone's ringing. I'll call you back," Rocky said, hanging up the phone and answering the phone that was in his pocket.  
>"Hello," he said, not recognizing the number on the display.<br>"This is Brandon Logan. I'm looking for Meredith DeSantos. It's regarding her brother, Thomas," the officer said.  
>"I'm her husband. She's ill at the moment, can I help you," Rocky asked, dread filling every space in his body.<br>"I'm an officer that patrols the Foveaux Strait. That's the body of water that Dr. Mercer's island is in. We responded to an explosion in the vicinity of the island. We reached the coordinates of the island, but it is not there," he said.  
>"WHAT! Are you saying the island my brother-in-law is working on has disappeared," Rocky said.<br>"The island is gone. There is a wide debris field. We believe the island suffered an earthquake and slipped beneath the surface of the water. We haven't located any survivors. Dr. Mercer informed us that only your brother-in-law still remained on the island. We've checked with the other dozen employees and they are all away from the island and accounted for. Only Dr. Oliver is missing," the officer said.  
>Rocky nearly dropped the phone. "What are you doing to try to find him," Rocky asked.<br>"We're searching the area around the island, but we're not optimistic that we will locate Dr. Oliver. We fear he may have been trapped in the explosion. We'll keep you informed. Let me give you our office number so your wife can contact us if she has any questions," the officer said and recited the number for Rocky. It was the same number on his display, so he would just save the number for future reference.  
>The officer offered his sympathies and promised to call with any new information.<br>Rocky tossed the phone on the bed and turned around. Meredith stared at him, her eyes wide as saucers.  
>"Something DID happen to Tommy," she said.<br>Rocky sat down on the bed next to Meredith. He took her hand and cleared his throat.  
>"Apparently the island Tommy was on suffered an earthquake or explosion or something. The rescue teams went to the island, but the island is gone. There's no trace of it above the water," he said.<br>"Do we need to go to New Zealand? Is he in the hospital," Meredith asked, her eyes begging him to answer in the positive.  
>"Meri, there's no trace of Tommy. He's not in the hospital. They can't find him. They believe he went down with the island. I'm sorry, babe, but Tommy's dead," Rocky said, breaking his own heart as he delivered the words to his wife.<br>Meredith jerked her hand away from Rocky. "Dead? Tommy's dead? No, no, NO," she screamed as she jumped off the bed.  
>"Mer, they haven't found him. He's missing and they believe he's dead," Rocky said, trying to calm his wife.<br>"Do you believe that," she asked him.  
>"Babe, all the evidence points to the fact that he probably drowned when the island suffered the explosion or earthquake or what ever. The haven't found him. I'm afraid he's dead," he said.<br>Meredith looked at the floor and then back up at her husband. "He's not dead, Rocky. If he were dead, I'd know it," she said.  
>"You said you felt almost empty. Like you'd be swallowed up. What else could that mean but that he's dead," he asked.<br>"I said 'almost' I didn't say I was empty. Tommy's alive and he's hurt or something, but he's alive out there somewhere. They have to keep looking for him," Meredith said.  
>"Kimberly felt something happen to Tommy, also. You should call her and see if she feels the same way," Rocky said.<br>He was trying to hold onto his wife's dream that her brother wasn't dead, but everything was telling him that Tommy wasn't alive any longer.  
>Just as Meredith was about to call Kimberly, there was a knock at the door.<br>Rocky went downstairs and opened it. Kimberly stood there, crying.  
>"He's dead, Rocky," Kimberly said.<br>"No he's not," Meredith said.  
>"I know he's dead. I feel it in my heart," Kimberly said.<br>"Well, then maybe you're not as much of a soul mate to my brother as you thought. He's not dead. I would feel it if he was," Meredith insisted.  
>"You're his sister. I know you two share a bond, but I KNOW he's dead, Meri," Kimberly shouted at her.<br>Meredith stared to walk away from Kimberly, trying to figure out who to call.  
>"Meredith, this is all your fault," Kimberly screamed.<br>Meredith turned around. "MY FAULT."  
>"If you had just left things alone like I had asked, Tommy and I would be figuring out what to have at the wedding reception. Now, I'm trying to figure out how to tell Siobhan about her father and how her aunt played a part in her father's death," Kimberly said.<br>"Tommy's not dead. You need to start thinking about how we can save him," Meredith said, trying not to lose her temper with Kimberly.  
>"NO! Tommy's dead and I'm holding you partially responsible. We're going to miss out on so much together. I will never forgive you for this Meredith Oliver. Never," Kimberly said.<br>"Get out of my house. Get the HELL out. Tommy is not dead and I won't have you blaming the fact that you didn't take him up on his proposal before you lost him. That's not my problem," Meredith said.  
>Kimberly didn't say a word. She walked out of the apartment and slammed the door for effect. Meredith collapsed on the sofa. Rocky put his arms around her.<br>"Do you feel like Kim does," she asked him.  
>"No. You're not responsible for Tommy's decision. I do think you should have stayed out of it, but that's not the issue here," Rocky said.<br>"Then what is," Meredith said, facing her husband.  
>"Look, Meri. Tommy's missing. He's either missing or he's dead. Either way, you need to prepare yourself for what might be a possibility. He might not come home," Rocky said.<br>"If I don't want to believe that, what are you going to do," she asked him.  
>"I'll support you, but I want you to be realistic," Rocky said.<br>"Fine. You and Kimberly can plan Tommy's funeral. I'm going to try to find him," Meredith said.  
>She ran upstairs and slammed the bedroom door.<br>She threw herself on the bed and cried. Tommy was gone for the moment. She knew her brother was still alive and out there somewhere. She was going to find her brother with or without Rocky's help.

Kimberly drove home, tears nearly blurring her vision.  
>She arrived back at the house, Tommy's presence everywhere she looked. She had dropped Siobhan off at her mom's house. Her mom had arrived from France for Siobhan's birthday and to spend a month long vacation back in California. Caroline had wanted to spend a day with her granddaughter and Kimberly was glad for the distraction, especially after what had felt a few hours ago.<br>She did blame Meredith for Tommy's premature departure from her life. If Meredith hadn't been so insistent on everyone being as happy as her and Rocky, Tommy wouldn't have felt like he HAD to leave if she hadn't said she would marry him.  
>Kim didn't know what to do. Meredith felt Tommy was still alive, but Kimberly knew it was a futile hope. She went to the phone and called Jason.<br>"Jase, can you come by the house. I need to talk to someone," she said.  
>Jason agreed to come right over. Katherine had taken Chloe to visit her family and Jason was going to spend the day painting the living room. He and Katherine had purchased a house that needed some rehab work and Jason spent his time away from the police station fixing the house. It was rewarding for him.<br>He headed toward Tommy's house wondering what Kimberly wanted to talk about.  
>When he arrived, he opened the front door and found Kimberly sitting on the floor of the living room, photographs and albums spread out before her.<br>"Kimmy, what's wrong," Jason asked, detecting something wasn't right with his 'little sister.'  
>"Tommy's island blew up and he's missing. I know he's dead, but I can't convince little Miss High and Mighty Meredith that. They haven't found him, Jase and he was the only one on that island. God, I can't believe she could do this to me. To her brother. To her niece," Kimberly said.<br>Jason was shocked. "Slow down. What happened," he asked.  
>"Tommy's island blew up. It's no more and he's dead and it's all Meredith's fault," she said.<br>"Tommy's dead? You're sure about that," Jason asked,  
>"Jase, if he were still alive, I'd feel it, but I don't. Tommy's my soul mate. He's dead," Kim said.<br>"Meri doesn't agree with you," Jason asked.  
>"Of course not. She thinks he's still alive because she doesn't feel like her heart's been ripped out or feels that empty. She just doesn't want to admit that he's dead," Kim said.<br>"So why do you think that it's her fault that Tommy's dead," Jason asked, not understanding Kim's logic for blaming Meredith for something that she hadn't been able to control.  
>"She told him that if I didn't want to get married that he should take the nine-month assignment on the island. The distance would make me realize I wanted to be with him," she said.<br>"Did it," he asked her.  
>"Yes, but he didn't need to travel all that way just to prove a point. He could have stayed here with me and his daughter. I wanted nothing more than to marry him. I was just a little scared," she said.<br>"Tommy's an adult. If he wanted to go to the island, that was his decision," Jason said.  
>"No. Tommy and Meri talk about everything. Meri's been on a 'love' kick since she married Rocky and she thinks everyone needs to be paired off. She wouldn't leave us alone. She told Tommy about Siobhan," Kim said.<br>"She did, but, Kim, you asked her to tell Tommy," Jason said.  
>Kimberly, who'd been rushing around the house, trying not to cry, whipped around and faced Jason.<br>"Are you defending her," Kimberly asked.  
>Jason put up his hands.<br>"She's ruined my life. I can't be with Tommy now because she killed him," Kimberly said.  
>Jason put his hands on Kimberly's shoulders, stopping her manic pace.<br>"Kim, stop. Meri was only trying to help. She didn't know something like this would happen. This is Tommy. He's been through a lot and always come back fighting. He's not going to let a little island sinking and fire keep him from you and his daughter," Jason said, trying to cheer her up.  
>"Tommy's gone and the only person to blame is Meredith," she said. "Just go back home. I have a lot of stuff to do. I'm sure Tommy's parents will want to have a memorial service or something," she said.<br>She left the room and went upstairs. She slammed the bedroom door. Jason walked out of the house, checking to make sure the door was locked and went to his car.  
>He called Rocky.<br>"Hey, Kimberly just told me. How's Meri," he asked.  
>"Devastated. She's convinced he's still alive because she feels him. She says he needs help and she'll head to the island herself if someone doesn't help him soon," Rocky said.<br>"What do you think," Jason asked him.  
>"Normally, I'd say they were going to get their heart broken. Since it's Meri and Tommy, I'm starting to believe her," Rocky said.<br>"What about his family," Jason asked.  
>"They think he's dead. I told them that Meri would participate in a service, but that Kim would probably be the one with all the insight. Meri's already said she's no going to go to a service for someone that isn't dead," Rocky said.<br>"Let me know if I can do anything," Jason said.  
>"Will do. Thanks, man," Rocky said, hanging up the phone.<br>He stared at the phone and then up at the stairs that led to the room that held his wife.  
>Her conviction that her brother was alive was so strong that she was risking her relationship with Kimberly and her parents.<br>Taking a deep breath, he went upstairs to see if there was something he could do for her.

The rest of the teammates got the news and within 48 hours, the majority of teams had gathered in Tommy and Kimberly's house. They shared stories about Tommy and everyone talked about how much they admired him.  
>The only presence noticeably absent from the gathering was Meredith. She had refused to attend because she didn't believe Tommy was dead. She knew in her heart that he hadn't left her or Kim or Siobhan.<br>Rocky had attended for a few minutes, but he was starting to agree with Meredith.  
>They had been able to raise the island back to it's previous level and Tommy's body hadn't been discovered in the ruins. No one could explain what happened to Tommy, but Meredith was certain it was further proof that he was alive.<br>***Meredith believes the opposite of everyone, including Kimberly. Which woman, both important in the life of Tommy Oliver, will be right? What's going to happen to the friends in the wake of Tommy's demise?*** -mereditholiver


	40. Light in the Tunnel

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters. I own Meredith. Enjoy!

LIGHT IN THE TUNNEL  
>When Rocky returned home, he found Meredith looking over a map of the area where Tommy had disappeared.<br>"He's got to be hiding somewhere," she said.  
>"They searched everywhere and couldn't find him. If he was on another small island or even a sandbar, they would have found him," Rocky said.<br>Meredith watched Rocky roll up the maps. Suddenly she had an idea. "Rocky, what if he were in a cave of some sort," she asked.  
>"If it were lined with the right metal compounds, he might not be detectable. If they searched the surface and didn't bother with the caves, he would have been missed. You might have something their, babe," he said.<br>He picked up the phone and placed a call to Eric Myers. The Quantum Ranger had become friends with Rocky and Meredith following a minor accident that left him seeking treatment from Meredith for a leg injury.  
>Rocky had made Eric manager of the dojo. He had immediately volunteered to coordinate an effort to locate Tommy. The local authorities thought they were wasting their time, but Meredith was convinced.<br>"Eric, Rocky. Were all the caves and underground tunnels searched? Meri thinks he might be in one of those. Maybe she's right," Rocky said.  
>"I'll check and see if there is anywhere we haven't checked. Andros said they're having trouble with the scanners because of the natural metals in some of the places near the island. Billy's coming aboard to see if he can help," Eric said.<br>"Billy thinks Tommy's alive," Rocky asked, shocked. Adam said he believed Tommy was alive to pacify Meredith. Everyone else felt Meredith was living in a fantasy world and, when the reality of the situation hit, she would be in a bad way. Many were worried Meredith might try to kill herself again. Rocky wouldn't let that happen.  
>"He said he trusts Meri's instinct over Kimberly's in this situation. He knows the bond of those two siblings," Eric said.<br>"Let me know if you find anything," Rocky said, ending the call.

He came out of the bedroom to find Meredith's parents in the living room.  
>"Meri, why didn't you come to the service. It was very beautiful. Jason did a fine job of remembering your brother," Dr. Oliver said.<br>"That's good, but I didn't go because I refuse to mourn someone who isn't dead," she said, turning around to go into the kitchen.  
>"Why are you doing this, Meredith? You're making this difficult time even more so for us. I would like to remember and grieve for your brother with you. We should be together during this time," her mom said.<br>"You know how close we are because you've commented on it for as long as I can remember. If Tommy were dead, don't you think I'd be curled up in a ball, crying? Don't you think I'd shut everyone out? Try suicide again? Mom, Dad I'm not doing this out of disrespect because Tommy isn't dead. But if I don't help him, he just might," she said.  
>Meredith went upstairs. She sat on her bed. 'Why God, why? This is becoming increasingly difficult for me. It would be so much easier to pretend he was dead. That's what everyone believes. I don't know how much longer I can hold out this hope. Help me,' she prayed.<br>She fell back onto the bed and closed her eyes, remembering all the times she'd had with her brother and their friends.

"Rocky, have you tried explaining things to her," Dr. Oliver asked.  
>"I have, but you know how stubborn your daughter can be. The last time I tried to convince her to accept the possibility that he might be dead, I slept in the downstairs apartment. That was worse than sleeping on the couch. So I haven't tried. Besides, I agree with her," Rocky said.<br>"You believe Tommy is still alive. How? It's been five days," Jane said.  
>"I know," Rocky said, understanding what his in-laws were saying. "I'll let you know if something happens. Just have a little faith in Meredith. She's a lot stronger than anyone realizes. She believes in what she's saying and, because I love her, I believe her, too."<br>His in-laws left and he went up to the bedroom. Meredith was on the bed, sleeping. He took a blanket from the closet and covered her up. He went back downstairs and looked at the computer model. He was tired of sitting here. He had to help. He called Billy.  
>"We don't have anything yet, Rocky," Billy said instead of the traditional greeting.<br>"I know. I want to help," he said.  
>"We're at the hanger," Billy said.<br>Rocky scribbled a note to Meredith that he was at the hanger and left the apartment. For his wife's sake, Rocky hoped they weren't all wasting their time.

Kimberly sat on the couch, watching Siobhan in her swing. She couldn't believe it had been five days since she'd gotten word that Tommy was dead. Despite her best friends optimism, Kimberly was certain the love of her life was dead. The father of her daughter wasn't coming home.  
>When they were teens and Tommy had disappeared, Kimberly and the rest of their friends had never once felt he wouldn't come back. Meredith had always been the most optimistic about the situation. She felt that Tommy would come back, no matter the circumstances.<br>As much as Kimberly wanted to hold on to her friends vision that he'd come back, she couldn't. The evidence and the fact that they weren't teens any longer seemed to compound the truth to Kimberly.  
>Tommy was dead.<br>No amount of bargaining or reasoning with God or what ever higher power there was, could change that. She had accepted the truth and needed to try to move on with her life. Both for herself and her daughter.  
>Kimberly just wasn't sure how Meredith fit into the equation. Yes, Kim blamed her for meddling and giving Tommy the crazy idea to leave her and Siobhan, but she did have a point. No one would have expected Kim to turn down a relationship with Tommy. Kim hadn't expected it until the words came out of her mouth.<br>Still, she'd asked Meredith to stay out of it and she hadn't.  
>Kim took her sleeping daughter out of her swing and carried her to her crib. Kim went into the bedroom and changed into one of Tommy's shirts. She closed her eyes and breathed in the scent that was him. She curled up on the bed, hoping this was a dream, but knowing it was not. She willed the ache and the emptiness to go away, but she knew it would remain when she woke up. She slept a dreamless sleep, unaware of what was happening.<p>

Rocky looked at the scans of the area and saw something the drew his attention.  
>"What is this, Billy," he asked.<br>"I am not sure. We scanned that sector several times and this is the first time that particular energy pattern has appeared," he said.  
>"Do you think it could be Tommy," Andros asked<br>"Possible. Get Eric to check out the area," Billy said.  
>Andros contacted Eric and he said he'd check the area.<br>"Now we wait," Billy said.  
>"I've gotten pretty good at that," Rocky said, unable to hide his excitement that they might have found Meredith's brother.<p>

Eric traveled to the location by boat. He slowly peered into the various caves that dotted the islands around the location of Mercer's former island lab.  
>He rounded an island on route to another cave when he saw a sight that made him smile.<p>

He crawled toward the light at the end of the tunnel. He almost laughed at the statement. He was hoping he'd get to that light today and it would mean he'd be rescued. He didn't know how long it had been since the island exploded. He didn't know how long he'd been waiting for rescue. He was starting to lose hope and the wound to his leg was seriously infected. He knew he had a fever and needed help or he wouldn't make it.  
>He prayed that his sister and Kimberly would know he was alive and they would keep searching for him. He just had to hang on a little longer.<br>He reached the mouth of the cave and collapsed on the ledge just outside. The warmth of the sun felt good, but brought home just how much he needed water. He was just about to give in to the sleep that was calling him when he heard a boat. He then heard a voice that he thought he recognized, but couldn't quite place.  
>"Do you know I've been looking all over this place for you? Do you know how much trouble you've caused," the man said, smiling widely.<br>"Haven't a clue, but I'm glad you're here," Tommy said.  
>"Your sister has been driving us all crazy to find you. It'll be good to tell her something good for a change," Eric said, assessing Tommy's condition.<br>"Let's get me out of here. I'm not feeling too good," Tommy said, before he passed out.

Eric could tell Tommy was in a lot of trouble even before he passed out. The urgency of the situation increased when Eric actually set eyes upon Tommy's condition.  
>He cued up his communicator.<br>"Andros, I found Tommy, but he's in bad shape. He was talking to me, but he just went unconscious," Eric said.  
>"I'll notify the patrol boats in the area that you've found him. Can't have anyone find out how we found him," Andros said.<br>"Understood. I'll assess Tommy's condition and wait for the boats," Eric said.  
>He turned his attention back to the former ranger. Eric hoped he could give Meredith and Kimberly some good news.<br>Ten minutes after Eric spoke to Andros, the boats arrived to transport Tommy.  
>"I thought we'd searched every inch of this place," one boat attendant said.<br>"He must have been in the cave. I just happened upon it and found him on the ledge. He looks like he needs serious medical attention," Eric said.  
>The paramedics climbed on to the ledge and assessed Tommy's injury.<br>"He needs to get to the hospital. This leg injury is pretty serious and, I'd say, infected. He's seriously dehydrated. Let's get him on the boat and I'll start some fluids," the first paramedic said.  
>The two medics, with the help of Eric and the boat attendants, loaded Tommy onto a stretcher and onto the boat. Eric took possession of Tommy's battered briefcase. The medics asked if Eric would contact his family. Eric assured them someone would be there in the hospital for Tommy.<br>He watched them speed toward the mainland and followed after them. He would meet Andros at the coordinates and get back to California.

Rocky and Billy were in the computer room at the hanger, waiting for word.  
>Andros came into the computer room and faced Rocky.<br>"Eric just contacted me," he said.  
>Rocky looked at him. He braced himself for whatever was going to come out of Andros' mouth, good or bad.<br>"He found Tommy," Andros said.  
>"Meri was right? Is he OK," Rocky asked.<br>"Eric said he needed to get to the hospital quick. I'm sure they authorities will be notifying Meredith shortly about Tommy's rescue. You guys might want to get ready to go to New Zealand," Andros said.  
>"I better get home," he said.<br>Rocky ran out of the computer room and to his car, hoping he'd get home before Meredith got the phone call. He also hoped he'd be able to keep it a secret until she heard the official word.

Meredith busied herself around the house. The hospital had given her two weeks off because of Tommy's disappearance. She knew they called it bereavement, but he wasn't dead so she didn't think of it that way.  
>She took the apple pie out of the oven and placed it on the counter to cool.<br>She looked at the door when Rocky entered.  
>"Hey babe. Thought you'd be sleeping," he said, kissing her.<br>"Wanted to do something so I baked a pie," she said.  
>"Can't wait to try it," he said, kissing her again.<br>Meredith was about to ask her husband about his time at the hanger when her phone rang.  
>She didn't recognize the number, but she answered the phone.<br>"Hello," she said.  
>"I'm trying to get in touch with Meredith DeSantos, sister of Dr. Thomas Oliver," a man said.<br>"This is Meredith," she said.  
>"I have some news regarding your brother, Mrs. DeSantos," he said.<br>Meredith took a deep breath, not sure what he was going to say.  
>"He has been found and was brought in about an hour ago," he said.<br>Meredith couldn't breathe. She couldn't believe what the man had just told her.  
>"He's alive," she asked.<br>"Yes, ma'am. He is alive, but he's very ill. He must have cut his leg on some debris from the explosion and now has a severe infection. I've started him on some IV antibiotics and pain medicine. He's severely dehydrated so we're giving him fluids for that. He's being evaluated by some specialists. I'm fairly confident that he'll recover from this injury and be able to return to California," he said.  
>"If I travel there, can I see him," Meredith asked, unsure of what to say.<br>"Of course. Make your arrangements and we'll be waiting for you," he said.  
>"Thank you, sir. We'll be there when we can arrange travel. Thank you," Meredith said.<br>She ended the call and looked at her husband. Tears streaming down her face, she wrapped her arms around Rocky.  
>"He's alive," she whispered in his ear before she fainted.<p>

"Babe, wake up," Rocky said.  
>Meredith woke up with a terrible headache and on the floor of her kitchen.<br>"What happened," she asked as she sat up.  
>"You found out Tommy's alive and then you fainted. You ok," he asked her.<br>"Yeah. I can't believe it. Oh, my gosh. I have to call mom and dad," she said.  
>Rocky helped her up and handed her the phone.<br>Meredith called her parents.  
>"Meri, dear, is everything OK," her mom asked.<br>"Mom, they found Tommy. He's alive and in the hospital in New Zealand. Rocky and I are going down there," she said.  
>"Your brother is alive? He's alive," her mom said.<br>"Yes. He's alive and in the hospital. He has an infection in his leg from an injury and he's dehydrated. They're fairly sure he'll be OK," she told her mom.  
>"We'll get some things together and go down there as well," her mom said.<br>"OK. I'm going to call Kimberly and let her know. Rocky's searching for flights right now, so we should be able to leave soon. I'll call you later," she said.  
>She turned back to Rocky.<br>"Did you find a flight," she asked.  
>"Yeah. I'm going to book it now and then we should pack," he said.<br>"You start, I'll call Kim," Meredith said, dialing Kim's number.

Kim was groggy when she answered the phone. If she'd been awake more, she might have ignored the call from Meredith. She wasn't in the mood to here her friends positive thoughts about Tommy. Kim wanted to accept what happened and move on with her life.  
>"Hello," she said.<br>"Kim, I have some news about Tommy," Meredith said.  
>"Mer, if you're calling to tell me that you have a feeling that Tommy is alive, I don't want to hear it. I can't take more of this," Kim said, preparing to hang up on Meredith.<br>"He's in a hospital in New Zealand. They just found him a few hours ago. Rocky and I are heading to New Zealand," Meredith said.  
>"He's really alive? He's been found and he's in a hospital," Kim asked.<br>"Yeah. I'll let you know how he is when we actually see him," Meredith said.  
>Kimberly was speechless. As much as she had hoped and prayed that he was actually alive, she never expected it to be true.<br>"Meri, I'm sorry. Please, tell him I love him. Let me know if Siobhan and I can come down there," Kim asked.  
>"I will. I'll call you," Meredith said.<br>She ended the call and went upstairs to help Rocky. She threw a few items of clothing into a bag. She had a bag of Tommy's laundry that she had done when he came by to work out or teach a class, so she added them to the suitcase.  
>"Babe, Dr. Mercer just called. He offered his private jet to fly us to New Zealand and said it would be available to bring us back when Tommy could return. He also offered us the use of one of his condos near the hospital so we won't have to find a hotel room," Rocky said.<br>"That's awfully nice of him. When does the flight leave," Meredith asked.  
>"He said as soon as we get to the airport, we can leave," Rocky said.<br>"Then what are we waiting for," she asked.  
>She and Rocky headed out the door and to the airport.<br>Rocky called his staff and asked they run things while he was gone. Meredith called the hospital and told them that Tommy had been found and she was heading to New Zealand to get him. She was told to take her time and they'd wait for her to come back.  
>As she and Rocky boarded the plane she couldn't help but smile at the fact that she felt relieved and at peace for the first time since she first heard about the explosion.<br>She leaned on Rocky's arm and fell asleep.  
>***OK, Meredith was right and Tommy's alive. But do you really think it's going to be that easy? Hehe. What's going to happen when Meredith and Rocky arrive in New Zealand? What's Kim's stalker going to do with Rocky and Meredith out of the way for a bit? Check back and see.*** -mereditholiver<p> 


	41. Here We Go Again

DISCLAIMER: Please see previous chapters. I own nothing but Meredith.

HERE WE GO AGAIN

As soon as the plane landed, Meredith was ready to deplane. The anticipation and worry since she found out her brother was alive was getting to her and she wanted to lay eyes on him.  
>She and Rocky exited the plane and found someone there to greet them.<br>"Mr. and Mrs. DeSantos, I am Hugh. Dr. Mercer asked me to be your driver while you are here. I'll take you anywhere you need to go," Hugh said.  
>He took the three bags the couple had and showed the way to his car.<br>"I'd like to go to the hospital to see my brother," Meredith said.  
>"Of course. I will take you there and then take you to the condo," Hugh said, helping Meredith into the back of the limo.<br>When Rocky got in beside her, she whispered in his ear, "Seems like Dr. Mercer's trying to make up for something. I wonder if he does this to everyone that visits or just the families of those he has killed," she said.  
>Rocky shrugged his shoulders. "It does seem like too much, but Dr. Mercer thinks a lot of Tommy, so this is probably his way of showing it by doing this for his family," Rocky said.<br>The drive to the hospital wasn't that long and Meredith and Rocky soon found themselves at the admission desk.  
>"May I be of assistance, ma'am," the clerk behind the counter asked.<br>"I'm looking for my brother. His name is Dr. Thomas Oliver," Meredith said.  
>The woman looked Tommy up in the computer.<br>"What is your name," she asked.  
>"Dr. Meredith Oliver DeSantos," Meredith said. She rarely used the Oliver name, unless it was necessary. Tonight was that kind of night.<br>"Of course, he's in room 343. Third floor, turn left out of the elevators and follow the signs to his ward," the clerk said.  
>Meredith and Rocky thanked her and headed toward Tommy's room.<br>They exited the elevator and found Tommy's room with ease. Meredith knocked on the door and heard her brother tell them to come in.  
>Meredith opened the door and was shocked at her brother's appearance. She smiled as she took in the sight before her.<br>Tommy's usually neat appearance was not so. His hair was dirty, but Meredith decided it was because he'd been on that ledge or cave for a while. His leg was elevated and bandaged. An IV ran in his arm that fed him fluids and antibiotics to fight the infection.  
>Tommy seemed paler and a tad smaller than when she saw him last, but it had been a few months and he had been 'lost' somewhere for a period of time.<br>"Hey! I can't tell you how great it is to see you," she said, hugging her brother.  
>"I'm glad to see you. Thanks for coming," Tommy said.<br>"It's not everyday our brother ends up in the hospital," Rocky said, shaking Tommy's hand.  
>Tommy looked at his sister and then Rocky.<br>"Anything for attention," he said.  
>"Doctors made it sound like you were really doing badly. Glad to see your better than their previous assessment," Meredith said.<br>"I'm hoping they'll let me out of here. I've got a lot of work to finish," Tommy said.  
>"I'm sure the work can wait," Meredith said.<br>"Maybe, but I want to get home soon. This place isn't what I thought it would be," Tommy said.  
>"Well, the family will be glad to have you home," Rocky said.<br>Rocky looked at his wife, who was looking at her brother. Rocky couldn't read the look on her face, but he was certain what she was thinking, wasn't good.  
>"Hey, can you wait in the hall? I want to talk to my brother for a moment," Tommy said.<br>Meredith jumped slightly, then corrected herself, praying Tommy didn't notice. She looked at Rocky and exited the room.  
>Meredith left and went to the waiting area on that floor for patients. She walked in and noticed it was empty. She shut the entrance to the room and positioned herself so she could see the door and took out her cell phone.<br>She placed a call to a number she had come to memorize in the last few days.  
>"Hello," Billy said.<br>"We have a serious problem," Meredith said.  
>"What are you talking about? Tommy's been found and Kimberly apologized for making things harder on you. What's this problem," Billy asked.<br>"You're really going to think I'm loony, but I need you to check out that energy signature you found when you located Tommy. Can you compare it with a pervious signature of Tommy's," Meredith asked.  
>"Certainly. However, that test will take at least 24-36 hours to complete. What are you looking for," Billy asked.<br>"You'll know when you see it," she said before she hung up the phone. She left the waiting area and headed back toward Tommy's room. His 'brother' should be finished by now.

"How are things with Kimberly," Tommy asked.  
>"Things are going well. We haven't been able to find the person responsible for Kim's threats, but she hasn't been attacked or threatened since you left," Rocky said.<br>"Well, you know what you have to do. You have to protect Kimberly until I'm able to do it," Tommy said.  
>"Sure I'll protect her and Siobhan," Rocky said.<br>"Siobhan," Tommy asked.  
>"Your daughter," Rocky clarified for him.<br>"Yeah, but I don't think she's my daughter. I'm going to have to find out when I get back home and can hash things out with Kim," Tommy said.  
>"How can you say that," Rocky asked, amazed the thought crossed his mind.<br>"I had a lot of time to think while I was in that cave and I thought about the amount of time I wasted and the fact that I never questioned the validity of her claim about Siobhan. I will not pay for someone else's child," Tommy said.  
>Rocky looked at the man before him. The things Tommy was saying didn't make sense. He'd never had any reason to doubt Kimberly, so why was he doing it now. Did he, in fact, have a revelation that left him disillusioned?<br>Rocky wasn't sure what was happening but he knew he had to talk to Meredith.  
>"Well, bro, I'm going to let you get some sleep. We'll be back tomorrow," Rocky said, exiting the room.<br>He found his wife walking down the hallway toward Tommy's room. He grabbed her arm and turned her around. Not fighting him, Meredith let herself be led around by Rocky. When they were safely in the hospital lobby, Rocky spoke.  
>"Tommy is questioning Kimberly and the baby's paternity. Tommy said he had a moment of clarity in that cave and he doesn't think Siobhan is his," Rocky said.<br>"OK, something is definitely wrong. What's with the business about you being his brother," Meredith asked.  
>"Tommy probably wanted to talk about his paternity doubts but didn't want to talk about them in front of you. You know how he hates to upset you or drive a wedge between you and Kimberly," Rocky said.<br>Meredith mulled over his answer. It did make sense. In the year that Tommy and Kimberly had been apart, Tommy had never once told Meredith to chose between him and Kimberly. He'd respected her long friendship with her and hadn't interfered.  
>"Why is this happening now? Why not when he was working on the island alone. Separated from them," she asked.<br>Rocky shrugged his shoulders. "Babe, I have a hard enough time figuring you and your moods out. Figuring out Tommy isn't high on my list. That's your job," he said, kissing her cheek.  
>Meredith smiled at him and let herself be led back to the waiting car.<br>When they arrived at the condo, Meredith immediately crashed on the bed. The long day of travel and the time difference had caught up to her and her body craved sleep. Rocky crawled into the bed next to her and they quickly fell asleep.  
>Meredith slept fitfully, not liking the feeling she was getting from Tommy. Despite the reassurances she'd been given, she knew something wasn't right.<br>When she and Rocky awoke the next morning, Meredith was more convinced than the previous day that something was seriously wrong with her brother.  
>"What's the matter, babe," Rocky asked as Meredith put butter on the toast and set it on his plate.<br>"What are you talking about," she asked.  
>"Because you buttered my toast. You usually take to babying me when you have something big on your mind so you might as well share," Rocky said, taking a bite of the toast and grabbing Meredith's hand with his free one.<br>"Something's not right with Tommy," she said.  
>"Well, he was lost for several days. That's bound to mess a man up, right," Rocky said.<br>"Yeah, maybe, but what about all those things that he was saying? He's never had any reason to doubt Kimberly so why is he doing it now," Meredith asked, drinking her coffee.  
>"We went over this yesterday, babe. Who knows how anyone will react in that situation," Rocky said.<br>Meredith put her cup back on the saucer. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm being too sensitive," she said.  
>"I bet it will be different when you see him today," Rocky said.<br>"I hope you're right," Meredith said.  
>They finished breakfast and headed back to the hospital.<p>

"Hey, bro. How you feeling this morning," Meredith asked.  
>"Sore. Doctors think it will be a few more days before I can leave. Have to take more drugs," Tommy said, giving a small smile.<br>"Well, we want you to get well, so we're here until you're released to fly back to California," Rocky said.  
>"I guess going back to the island isn't going to work, so I guess I will go home. Of course, there is that matter of Kimberly living in my house with her daughter. How do I get around that," Tommy asked.<br>"Tommy, if you're serious about kicking Kimberly and Siobhan to the curb, then you should make sure they have somewhere to stay first," Rocky said.  
>"You can stay with Rocky and I until you can move back home," Meredith said.<br>"That is the perfect solution. Thanks Meredith," Tommy said.  
>Meredith cocked her eyebrows at Rocky, who took the unsaid communication. Tommy never called her Meredith unless it was something serious. She was usually Meri or sis with Tommy.<br>They stuck around for a few hours, just talking with Tommy about how he was feeling and what would happen when he got home. Meredith didn't like the conversation, so she didn't participate very much. Rocky tried to change the tone of the conversation, but Tommy never changed in his thinking. He was still convinced the Kimberly's daughter was not his own.  
>The couple excused themselves to get something to eat. Their schedules were still off and they needed to get out of the room.<br>As they headed down the elevator, Meredith pulled out her phone. She called Jason.  
>"Jase, can you get everyone together and get them down here. I think there's something here you all need to see," Meredith said.<br>"Did something happen," he asked.  
>"I just think you guys should all come down here and see Tommy. Might cheer him up. I'm sure I can get the Mercer private jet to bring you guys down," she said.<br>"OK. I'll call everyone and you can let me know what time to be at the airport," Jason said.  
>"I'll call you back," Meredith said.<br>She ended the call and quickly called Dr. Mercer.  
>"Dr. Mercer, this is Dr. DeSantos. Is it possible to get your private jet to fly to California and pick up some of Tommy's friends? The doctors think it might help his recovery," she said, hoping he wouldn't as her to speak with Tommy's doctors.<br>"Of course. I'll call the pilot and have him get underway. Tell your friends to be at the airport in 12 hours. I'll have the relief pilot stand-by to fly them back after the plane refuels," he said.  
>"Thank you, sir," Meredith said.<br>"What's up, babe," Rocky asked.  
>"I'm getting all of our friends down here. Something isn't right around here and I'm going to find out what that something is," she said.<br>Rocky didn't say anything, he just offered her his hand. Sometimes, Rocky realized, he didn't have to say anything at all. Just being there and showing support was enough for Meredith.

A day later, Meredith was waiting at the airport for her friends.  
>Kimberly, Jason, Tanya, Adam and Katherine exited the plane. Meredith greeted her friends and led them to a waiting limo where they would all go to the hospital.<br>When they arrived at the hospital, Meredith instructed the driver to park and wait for them. He nodded and, after helping everyone out of the car, headed for a parking spot to wait for Meredith's call to pick them up.  
>"Tommy's supposed to be able to come home tomorrow. His infection is gone and, with the exception of a few more doses of antibiotics, he should be ready to go without a problem," Meredith said.<br>Rocky was about to speak, when Meredith's cell rang. Seeing the readout, she immediately walked away from the group.  
>"What do you have," she asked.<br>"You were right. I did find something abnormal and you probably already know what that is," Billy said.  
>"I was hoping I was wrong, but thanks for indulging me," she said.<br>"Hey, you don't give up. I admire that," Billy said.  
>Meredith ended the call and walked back to the group. Rocky looked at her and she shook her head.<p>

Meredith stood in a circle with her friends.  
>"Guys, Billy just gave me some news regarding Tommy," she said.<br>"What about him? He is coming home today isn't he," Kimberly asked.  
>"Nothing has set him back, has it," Jason asked.<br>"It's nothing like that. Tommy's fine and can leave tomorrow. The problem is…well, I get this feeling… something not right," Meredith said.  
>"What do you mean, not right," Adam asked.<br>"I asked Billy to compare energy signatures and bio scans from Tommy both before and after the accident. He found a discrepancy," Meredith said.  
>"What are you talking about," Jason asked, clearly annoyed at Meredith.<br>"The discrepancy showed that the sample collected from Tommy here, doesn't match the one on file. None of them match a particular signature," Meredith said.  
>"What," Kimberly asked, clearly confused.<br>"Every time we morphed we altered our DNA slightly. That's why the power coins worked so well because they were already coded to our DNA. It changes the structure slightly. There is still evidence of that process despite our departure from the rangers. That slight change in structure is not going to be noticed in a normal scan unless you are actually searching for it. Tommy here, doesn't share those same markers that would show up because of our morphing. It's like someone created a Tommy and filled his brain with general numbers and facts. Enough information that he would pass any physical or physiological exam," Meredith said.  
>"So, what are you saying, Meri? This Tommy is a clone," Adam said, half joking.<br>"That's exactly what I was going to suggest. This clone Tommy has all his memories and his knowledge, but certain things are missing. Like that particular DNA sequence," Meredith said.  
>Meredith was certain her brother was trapped by something somewhere.<br>"This also eliminates a possible culprit in the island explosion. Rita and Zedd didn't do it," Meredith said.  
>"What do you mean," Kim asked.<br>"Rita and Zedd would have created the perfect clone. One that had the necessary genetic code. They'd want the clone, current ranger or not, to be able to hold a power coin, just in case. They wouldn't have been that sloppy. The person that did this, doesn't know about Tommy's past. Probably doesn't know anything about us," Meredith said.  
>"This is all just too much for me. Do you guys believe her," Kimberly asked.<br>"She was right about Tommy and she's always had our backs," Adam said.  
>Meredith looked around the room.<br>"This is a huge task for anyone, but you have to trust me. I know Tommy's still alive out there and we have to find him. When we find him, the clone will, hopefully, go back to where it came from. I know I'm asking a lot, but you have to trust me once more," Meredith said.  
>Everyone nodded in agreement and they left the room.<br>Kimberly grabbed her arm and spun her around. "What do you think you're doing," she asked through her clenched teeth.  
>Meredith faced Kimberly. "Trying to save my brother. I don't know what that is in 343, but it is not my brother. It's not Tommy. Now forgive me, I want to be left alone," Meredith said, turning around and heading out the door.<br>Meredith stopped outside the hospital and leaned up against the wall. She didn't know why all this was happening, but by proving that the Tommy in the hospital bed was a clone, she hoped the search would begin again for Tommy.  
>She couldn't help but feel they would find the answer and the person behind this, but possibly not before Tommy was dead. The thought brought fresh tears to her eyes and she quickly wiped them away and headed for the parked car.<br>***It's a clone! Who would do this to Tommy and why? What's with Kimberly? Check out the next chapter.*** -mereditholiver


	42. Lost and Found

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but Meredith. All other characters belong to someone else.

LOST AND FOUND.

"Do you guys actually believe that Meredith is telling the truth? Do you honestly believe that is a clone? Come on guys, you can't believe everything Meredith says just because she's Tommy's sister," Kimberly said, exasperated at her best friends.

"If Meri says that's a clone; it's a clone," Rocky said, disappointed that he had to, once again, defend his wife.

"Why would she even think something like that? Who would want to create a clone of Tommy? What purpose would it serve? We aren't rangers any more," Kimberly asked.

Meredith had returned to the room where her friends were talking and leaned up against the wall.

"Kim, I know you're upset, but you haven't heard what this Tommy's been saying. This Tommy wants to take you to court and find out if Siobhan is indeed his daughter. He doesn't believe that she is and he wants you both out of his house as soon as you find a place to live. Does that sound like your Tommy," Rocky asked. Even if he wasn't totally convinced that Meredith was right, he was going to plead her case and make her point for her.

"He doesn't think she's his daughter? Of course she is," Kimberly said, suddenly unable to keep up the anger."That's my point, Kim. If this Tommy was our Tommy, he would have begged to get out of here already and come home to you and Siobhan. I know how much Tommy adores his daughter. I also know that he'd never doubt your word if you said it was the truth," Meredith said. Everyone turned to stare at her.

"Are you going to help us find Tommy or are you going to fight us on it," Rocky asked.

"You're starting to sound crazy and obsessive, Meri," Jason spoke up.

Meredith snapped her head in his direction. Meredith, having been coping with her OCD since high school, was appalled that he would bring it up at this time.

"It's not obsessive to want the truth, is it? What if you weren't convinced Kat was really Kat after she suffered from some accident? Wouldn't you want to find out if it was really her and seek the truth," Meredith asked. Rocky, Meredith, Adam and Tanya stood on one side of the room, facing Jason, Katherine and Kimberly.

Meredith knew, if Kimberly didn't agree, that Jason would side with her and Katherine would go along with Jason because they were married.

"What if you're wrong? What's Tommy going to think when he finds out that you doubted that was him? That you encouraged the rest of us to abandon him and go on a wild goose chase to find out? How's that going to make you feel if you break your brother's heart," Kimberly asked."If that is Tommy in there, then I take full responsibility. If he shuts me out, I'll figure out how to handle it. But trust me, that's not Tommy in there," Meredith said. Kimberly looked at Jason, then back at Meredith. The confidence in Meredith's stance convinced Kimberly to go along with her. She'd help find out what 'really' happened.

"I'm in, but I still think you're crazy," Kimberly smiled. "I was a power ranger. I think we're all a bit crazy because of that," she said.

Meredith explained to everyone that Billy was going to search the same general area for residual turbo traces. Since the last power Tommy had held had been the red turbo, it would be the strongest. He would then scan for zeo traces to double check. Since the zeo crystals hadn't been destroyed, just retired, the energy would still be present in the last person to wield those powers.

The went back to condo. They were met by Eric and Andros. Billy spoke through the speaker on the cell from his lab.

"So does this theory of Meredith's have any credence," Kimberly asked.

"I believe that her observations and the familiar relationship she has with Tommy would lead me to the conclusion that if something isn't right, she would know. Despite being well-versed in most things Tommy, we would be unable to pick up on the subtleties that Meredith would be able to detect without a problem," Billy said.

The group looked at each other, bewildered by Billy's words.

"Because Tommy and Meri are brother and sister, she should know things that would make it fairly easy for her to tell if something's wrong. We wouldn't be able to do that as easily," Rocky said causing the entire room to look in his direction."What," he asked."Since when did you start translating for Billy," Kimberly asked."I've spent a lot of time with him and it's no different then when Meri and Adam start their doctor talk," Rocky said.

Meredith went into the kitchen to fix the group a snack.

When she set the sandwiches on the table, Billy interrupted."Guys, I have detected a residual turbo signature that is also aligned with the zeo crystal. I believe I have located Tommy," Billy said."He found him," Rocky said, before anyone could ask.

"Where is he? How do we get to him," Meredith asked, nearly crawling through the phone."I'm detecting a lot of evil around this cave Tommy's in and I'm not sure sending everyone in after him is a good idea," Billy said."What do we do," Kimberly asked."Jason and I can go," Rocky said.

"That's a good plan. Andros, can you teleport them to the location? Keep a lock on them because we might have to teleport Tommy to DECA depending on Tommy's injuries," Billy asked.  
>Andros acknowledged the statement and transported Jason and Rocky to the coordinates.<p>

They landed in a cave. The men looked around, but didn't see Tommy where they'd teleported.

They split up and searched the two tunnels off the entrance. Halfway through, Jason's narrowed and became impassible for him and someone of Tommy's height. He backtracked to the entrance when he heard Rocky call out. "Jase, he's back here," he called. Jason ran through the opening and found Rocky crouched next to Tommy. "Tommy, bro, time to wake up," Rocky said.

Tommy began to stir and slowly opened one eye."TOmmy, welcome back," Rocky said.

"Rocko, that you," Tommy asked, his voice coming out in a painful whisper.

"It's me man. Come on, let's move you and we'll teleport you to DECA and then you can go home," Rocky said as he and Jason helped him up."Hey, no offense, but if I ever need rescuing again, could you promise me that I won't see your ugly mug as soon as I wake up? I would much rather see Kimberly. Even Meredith would be a more welcomed site than you two," Tommy said before closing his eyes.

"What ever you say, man," Jason said as they prepared to teleport to DECA.

When the arrived on the ship, Andros took immediate inventory of Tommy's injuries. He had numerous bruises and scrapes, but nothing serious. Andros was concerned about Tommy's dehydration and his malnutrition.

Rocky stood by and looked at his brother-in-law.

Tommy noticed Rocky staring and said, "What, Rocko?""You won't believe the hell your sister's been through," Rocky said, sitting next to Tommy's bed.

"I hate that. How is Kimberly? Siobhan? Anything happen while I was gone," he asked."They're fine. Jase and I have been keeping an eye on them," Rocky said."Meredith was worried, huh," Tommy asked."That's putting it mildly. Everyone thought you were dead. Your parents had a memorial service and everyone was there. Except for Meri. She was the only one who thought you were still alive. She even yelled at your parents when they demanded that she accept that you were dead and not coming back. I, for a while, thought she was just too grief stricken to accept it, but she was certain you were still alive. She's the one who convinced Andros and Billy to keep looking for you," Rocky said.

"Bet that was fun for you," he said.

"She was certain you were still alive. She wouldn't do anything until she was sure you weren't coming home. Took a lot of convincing on her part to get everyone else come to her side. She wasn't upset that no one really believed her, it was more that she couldn't believe that Kim thought you were dead," Rocky said. Tommy went quiet. Rocky knew he was processing the information.

Jason had heard Rocky giving Tommy the low-down on what had happened since he'd been missing.  
>Not wanting to disturb Tommy while he was thinking about what Rocky told him, Jason went back into the control room on DECA. He sat down at the table, leaned back and closed his eyes."What's on your mind," Rocky said.<p>

Jason sat up with at start, not having heard Rocky come into the room."You have got to stop doing that," Jason said. Rocky smiled a half-smile. "Sorry. Those ninja powers will never leave me. Stealth is a good thing to have. Should come in handy when I have kids," Rocky said, sitting down across from Jason."How is he," Jason asked, although he was almost certain he knew the response.

"How would you feel if the person you thought was your soul mate believed you were dead? That the only person in the world to not think that way was your sister? He's a bit shocked by the fact that Kimberly didn't immediately side with Meri. I know he'll get over it, but I'm more worried about how he will react when he finds out about the clone," Rocky said."Do we have a motive behind the clone," Jason asked. He, like the rest, hadn't been able to ascertain why a clone of Tommy was created in the first place, especially at this stage of his life.

Rocky shook his head.

"Do you really think Meri's right and Rita and Zedd had nothing to do with this," Jason asked.

"She makes a valid argument. Billy seems to agree with her that the person who created this clone must not have known about Tommy's ranger past. If they had, they would have known about the DNA sequence. I just hate to think we have a new enemy out there," Rocky said."What if it's not our enemy, but Tommy's," Jason pondered his suggestion for a moment. "Seems plausible. I just don't know why anyone would be coming after Tommy now. Rita wanted Tommy because he was the evil green ranger that was taken from her. Zedd wanted him because of Kimberly. Mondo wanted him because he was the leader of the zeos. The only one that didn't come after Tommy specifically was Divatox. She didn't have the Tommy-obsession everyone else did. According to Adam, she just had a destroy the rangers-obsession," Rocky said.

The men continued their conversation. Neither could decide who was after Tommy, but they both knew someone was after the former red, white and green ranger.

Andros and Eric entered the room.

"Guys, you and Tommy can leave. I think he's going to be fine, he just needs to drink fluids. Meri and Adam can probably handle it if something happens," Andros said.

"OK. So what do we do about the clone," Rocky asked."That's a difficult question. I don't have a definite solution to what should happen. You'll have to confront the issue when you return, but I don't know what the reaction will be," Andros said. Rocky and Jason went to get Tommy and they teleported to an empty hallway in the and flashing lights met their arrival. For a split second, Rocky and Jason found themselves wondering if they'd walked into the command center during an attack.

Jason rounded the corner and saw the medical personnel dashing in and out of Tommy's room. Meredith and Kimberly were standing around the corner, out of sight of the commotion.

Jason went to them."What happened," he asked."He's disappeared," Meredith said.

"Tommy's in the corridor. Maybe the clone slipped out or something when it realized we had the real Tommy," Jason said."Well, Tommy can go in there in the clone's place," Rocky said. They helped the still weakened Tommy to the bed and they all gathered around. Meredith went to tell the nurses that he husband and friend had taken Tommy for some fresh air, unaware it would cause problems.

"That's fine, Dr. DeSantos, we would just like to be informed if you move the patient again," the nurse said."Would you inform the doctor that I'm taking my brother out of here," Meredith said."I don't think that's wise," the nurse said."I need to get out of here," Tommy said from his position on the bed."I'll take full responsibility and take care of Dr. Oliver. He is my brother," Meredith said.  
>After much protesting, the nurse finally agreed to get Tommy's paperwork so he could leave. She made sure the doctor voiced the staff's apprehension about him leaving.<p>

A few hours later, Tommy was resting in the condo with Meredith, Rocky and Kimberly. The rest of the group was being housed in another condo just down the street. Meredith planned on leaving in the morning and returning Tommy to California.

Meredith and Rocky explained to Tommy what had happened."Someone made a clone of me," Tommy asked.

"Yeah and we don't know who it could be. Do you have any ideas why someone would want to make a clone of you," Meredith asked."No. My days as a ranger are over, so why would someone be coming after me now," Tommy questioned them."Something is definitely up but no one is sure exactly what it is," Kimberly said, sitting down with a muffled thump on the couch next to Tommy.

"Maybe the answers will come when we get back home," Rocky said.  
>They all got some sleep and were on the plane early the following morning for their flight back to California.<p>

Tommy was contacted by Dr. Mercer, who informed him that he still had some research to do to qualify for his PhD. Tommy was greatly distressed by this news and, after the island explosion, decided to take some time off. Dr. Mercer understood and told Tommy he'd have a position for him when he returned.

Tommy had made a small fortune with some minor inventions and some lucrative finds on some dig sites, so money wasn't something he was going to worry about for a while. He decided instead to concentrate on his family.

Three months after the 'accident,' Tommy felt the velvet box in his pocket. He was going to propose to Kimberly tonight. He only hoped she'd say yes.

***Tommy and Kimberly - engaged? Who created the clone? Why? Stay tuned for the next chapter.*** -mereditholiver


	43. A New Beginning?

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but this rambling and the character of Meredith. If it looks familiar, I probably borrowed it and twisted it for my own amusement.

A NEW BEGINNING?

The ring box was uncomfortable in his pocket. He'd thought about how he was going to propose, but, with his track record, he was thinking he should just put the ring on the table and ask her. Forget the flowers and candles.

He pulled into the driveway and parked in front of the garage. He opened the front door and was greeted with the smell of spaghetti sauce and Kimberly singing in the kitchen to some top-40 hit.

"Beautiful, I'm home," he said, setting his jacket on the chair by the door.

"Hey, handsome," she said, rushing to kiss him.

"Where's Siobhan," Tommy asked, noticing the empty high chair.

"She's spending the night with your parents. They wanted some time with her and I thought tonight would be a good surprise so we could have a night to ourselves. I don't have to work tomorrow and you're not subbing tomorrow," she said, wrapping her arms around his neck.

Tommy groaned and pulled her closer and kissed her.

Kimberly responded. A few kisses later, she pushed him back and turned to the stove to turn off the noodles and sauce.

Tommy wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed the back of her neck, exposed by her high ponytail.

"Would you like some dinner," she asked.

"I think I'm ready for dessert," Tommy said, turning Kim around and kissing her again.

"Tempting offer," she said, her fingers trailing down his arm.

Tommy stepped away, took her hand and led the way to the stairs. He stopped at the bottom and picked Kimberly up, bridal style and carried her to the bedroom.

He set her down on the bed, Kim wrapping her arms around him and dragging him down on top of her.

Suddenly remembering the ring in his pocket, Tommy rolled off Kimberly and held the ring box.

"What's wrong, Tommy," she asked him.

She notices the ring box and Tommy slides off the bed and gets on one knee.

"This might not be the most romantic proposal, but I wanted to do this now. I love you, Kimberly Anne Hart. Would you do me the honor of becoming Mrs. Thomas Oliver? I want nothing more than to have a family with you and our daughter and all the other children we are going to have. Will you marry me," he asked.

He opened the ring box and revealed a pink heart shaped diamond ring set in white gold.

"Oh, Tommy! It's beautiful. Of course I'll marry you! I'd love nothing more than to become Kimberly Oliver," she said, taking the ring and handing it to him.

He slipped it on her finger and drew her in for a kiss.

Soon they were caught up in a passion that can only be felt by two people meant to be together and joined by love.

They fell asleep wrapped in each others arms, the spaghetti completely forgotten during their passionate interlude.

Kimberly awoke at 11 that night. Tommy still had his arms around her and she closed her eyes and breathed in the scent that was her man. She felt calm and protected in his arms. She felt the ring on her finger and stared at it, unable to believe that they were getting married.

Of course it was something she'd wanted, but she knew Tommy had trouble dealing with the clone and what happened during his 'disappearance.' Her belief that he might be dead had hurt Tommy, but he'd moved passed it and they had been stronger the last few months. She only hope that a solution could be found as to who was stalking her and who'd sent a clone in Tommy's place and tried to kill him.

Tommy stirred next to her.

"Hey, handsome. You hungry," she asked, kissing his cheek.

"That sounds like a good idea," he said, placing a kiss on her lips.

She grabbed a discarded shirt of Tommy's and pulled it on over her head. Tommy's tall stature made his shirt look like a mini dress on Kimberly. Tommy pulled on his boxers and grabbed a shirt from his dresser drawer. She grabbed his hand and they headed back to the kitchen.

Kimberly set about reheating the spaghetti sauce and making fresh noodles. Tommy poured two glasses of water for them and set them on the counter.

He heard his cell phone beeping and went to check the messages.

He saw several calls from Andros and a text from his sister.

He read the text. CALL ME L8R. I HAVE NEWS 4 U N KIM.

Tommy couldn't imagine what news his sister had for him, but he called her right back while Kimberly was finishing the noodles.

"I didn't wake you, did I," Tommy asked when his sister answered.

"No. Just got home from the hospital and I'm waiting for Rocky to come home. He went to San Diego last night when I started my 24 hour call. He's supposed to be home soon since I'm off for a few days," she said.

"So what's the news you have for me? You and Rocko pregnant," Tommy asked.

"No, not yet. It's about the clone. I got a call from Billy when I got home. He thinks he knows who created the clone and sent it in your place," she said.

"Who," Tommy asked.

"Anton," she said.

Tommy was speechless. "Bro, you there," Meredith asked.

"Is he sure," Tommy asked.

"He traced some DNA signature back to a lab Anton operated the mainland in New Zealand. That's where the clone originated from," Meredith said.

"I don't believe it," he said.

"Well, believe it. The question is, why would Anton do it," she asked.

Tommy rubbed his forehead. He couldn't come up with a reason why his former boss and mentor would have had him killed.

Then, it hit him.

"The research," he said in a near whisper.

"Research? What research? Why would Anton try to kill you for the research," Meredith asked.

"We found a way to combine Dinosaur DNA with other reptile DNA. We also found a way to reactivate dormant DNA strands and bring Dinosaurs back to life. The problem was they had a very short life because of the replicated DNA. The hybrids didn't have that problem. Their problem was they were killers. When I realized what Anton wanted to do with them and how dangerous these creatures were, I destroyed the ones we had created. Anton must have found my notes that I had destroyed and recreated the hybrids. He must have been trying to get me out of the way since I protested this research. I was ready to leave the program when he finally let me destroy the research and remaining specimens. I should have known it was too good to be true," Tommy said.

"You can't blame yourself. The question remains: what to do about Anton," Meredith asked.

"Well, he knows we've found him out, so he can't do it again. I'll think about it and see what I want to have happen to him. I'll handle it and take care of it," he said.

"OK. Let me know what you decide. Rocky's home, so I'll talk to you in the morning," she said.

"OK. Love you, sis," he said.

"Love you, too, bro," she said.

He set his cell down on the counter. Kimberly had set his dinner in front of him and Tommy had yet to acknowledge her.

"Tommy, what's going on? What was that call with Meri about," Kim asked.

"Billy figured out Anton was responsible for the clone. He must have been trying to steal my research to create these hybrid dinosaurs to destroy the world. Why, I don't know," he said.

"I'm sorry, Tommy. I know how much you admired Anton. That's tough," she said, coming around to his chair and wrapping her arms around him.

"I don't understand his motivation," Tommy said.

"Who understand why anyone does anything evil or wrong," Kim said, feeling Tommy's arms slip around her.

Tommy said nothing, just held Kimberly.

"Maybe we should get to bed. You might think clearer in the morning," she said.

Tommy nodded his head and they walked back to their room to turn in for the night.

Tommy completely forgot the missed calls and messages from Andros. His conversation with his sister had shocked him.

As he and Kimberly turned out the light, Tommy couldn't stop thinking about what had just been revealed to him during his conversation with his sister and his conversation with Kimberly.

Tommy awoke the next morning to find Kimberly was out of bed. Since neither of them was working that morning, it seemed strange that she was already out of bed.

He threw on his shirt from last night and stumbled out of the bed. He felt like he'd gotten no sleep that night, the previous evenings conversation having kept him awake.

He found Kimberly flipping pancakes in the kitchen. He had to smile at the sight.

Kimberly had been notoriously bad in the kitchen when they first met. However, when she realized she was going to have to raise her child on her own, she'd taken cooking classes and was able to make basic dishes. When she and Tommy had gotten back together, she'd branched out into fancier dishes.

Tommy wasn't afraid to eat her cooking any longer and it was cute to see her in the kitchen.

"You're up early considering we are both off today," he said.

"Well, I thought you might like breakfast. I know you were having trouble sleeping," she said, sliding his pancakes onto a plate.

"Thanks. When's Siobhan coming home," he asked.

"This afternoon. Mom wants to get her photos taken, so I told he she could drop her off this afternoon. It'll give me a chance to do some cleaning," she said, sitting next to him with her own plate of pancakes.

Tommy's cell phone beeped.

"That has been beeping all morning. Did you forget to clear your message from Meri," Kim asked.

Tommy picked up the phone. He saw the caller ID. "No, apparently Andros has called me and I missed the calls. I'd better call him back," Tommy said.

He took the phone and went into the living room.

"Tommy, thank God. Where have you been," Andros asked without even a hello.

"Personal stuff. What's going on, Andros," Tommy asked.

"Something isn't right. There's a lot of evil energy building up and I can't find an explanation for it," he said.

"So why are you calling me? Isn't there an active team of rangers," he asked.

"They aren't strong enough. This is some serious evil. I think we might have to call a Code Red," Andros said.

"Unite the red rangers," Tommy said.

"Yeah. Reds have a stronger energy sequence and there are enough of us to defeat it," Andros said.

"Let me know," Tommy said and hung up the phone.

He returned to the kitchen, trying to figure out how to give Kimberly the information.

"Spill it," she said.

Tommy looked at her, shocked at her statement.

"What are you talking about," he asked.

"Please. Andros is like the protector of Earth. He's calling you and calling you which means there's something going on and he needs your help," she said.

"There's a lot of evil energy building and Andros is unsure what it means. He might have to call a Code Red," Tommy said.

Kimberly's fork hit the plate with a clank. "Unite the red rangers? That was something that we were told about but never thought it would happen. Can't the current rangers handle this," Kim asked.

"Not strong enough. Andros wants me to be ready," he said.

Kimberly walked up to him and kissed him.

"Just promise me you'll tell me when it happens and that you'll come home," she said.

"I promise. Now I just have to hope he doesn't call," Tommy said.

They sat down and finished their breakfast and went about their day.

Kim's mom dropped Siobhan off at their house that afternoon. Kimberly told her mom that she and Tommy were getting married and Kim's mom was ecstatic. Despite her initial hatred of Tommy for impregnating her daughter and then leaving her, she was glad they were back together. Kimberly told her mother that Tommy hadn't been aware of Siobhan's existence and that, when he found out, he'd always been there. Kim's mom told Kim to plan the wedding of her dreams and she and Pierre would pay for it.

She thanked her mom and told Tommy to call their friends and family and reveal their engagement.

Tommy called his parents and his sister and told them the good news. Kimberly called the rest of their friends and let them in on the secret. She'd made Aisha, Kat, Tanya and Meredith promise they would be bridesmaids in the wedding. The girls agreed and they talked about colors and other random ideas for the wedding.

Kim and her friends spent much of their spare time planning the wedding.

Two months had passed since the engagement and Tommy's phone call from Andros. He and Kimberly had planned on getting married in few months.

Tommy had called Jason and told him what was happening with Andros. Andros had said the energy was still building, but he didn't know what was going to happen. Tommy had wanted Jason to join him on the mission. He was discussing this with Jason in his kitchen, when his sister entered the room.

Judging by the look on Meredith's face, he didn't have to ask how much she had heard.

"Meri," he started.

"Why is it when ever something is about to happen, you're in it up to your neck," she asked.

"Come on Meri. We don't even know what's going on so there's no reason for you to get mad," he said to his sister.

"Really? So there isn't some new mission and a chance for all of you to regain your powers," she asked.

"Maybe, but if something is happening and we don't answer the call, we're going to have to live with the guilt if we don't do anything," Tommy said.

"That's fine, but I have to ask you NOT to ask Rocky to go. Please! If Andros calls all the reds into service, I want you to NOT let Rocky know. Promise me you won't ask him to help you," Meredith begged her brother.

Tommy looked into her eyes and nodded. "I promise," he said.

Meredith set the bag with bridal magazines on the counter before exiting the house.

"Are you going to ask Rocky," Jason asked.

"If the reds have to get together, I won't ask him because I promised Meredith," Tommy said, looking at Jason.

"What," Jason asked.

"YOU could ask him," he said.

"That would certainly make Meredith hate me," Jason said.

"Look we might not have to go anyway," Tommy said.

They continued to talk for a while before Jason headed back home to his wife and daughter.

Three months later, Kimberly was putting the addresses on the invitations. She couldn't believe she was getting married in six weeks. Nothing had happened in that time, including no contact from her stalker. She hoped that had run it's course.

Kimberly was home alone with Siobhan. Tommy had been taken off for an early bachelor party.

Tommy had gone with all the guys to Bulk and Skull's resort for Tommy's bachelor party. They were all having a wonderful time and enjoyed the sites from the beach.

While waiting for the rest of his friends to join him on the beach when he was approached by Bulk.

"Excuse me, sir, you have a phone call," Bulk said.

Tommy took the phone and listened to the other person.

"I'll do it," he said.

He hung up the phone and headed inside the resort to find Jason.

He found him coming down the hall.

"It's happening," Tommy said.

Jason visibly paled. Not from the fact they had the mission, but that the evil energy required a powerful force.

"You getting the rest," Jason asked. Tommy nodded his head.

"I'll talk to him," Jason said. Tommy returned to the lobby and made his phone calls. Jason went in search of Rocky.

Jason found Rocky on the phone with Meredith. He had to smile. Only Rocky would phone his wife during a 'guys only' weekend.

He listened as Rocky ended the call, telling Meri he loved her and would see her soon. Jason cleared his throat.

Rocky turned around. "Sorry, I just miss her. We've been working separate shifts lately, we haven't seen each other much," he said.

"No need to apologize. I'm glad Kat is at home with Chloe now. My work schedule changes constantly, so it's nice to know she's always home," Jason said.

"Meri's residency should finish soon. So, what's on your mind," Rocky asked.

"How would you feel if I told you there's an evil threat building up and we need some major firepower to defeat it," Jason said.

"I'd say you're crazy," Rocky said.

"There is a threat to Earth. Andros and Tommy have been monitoring the progress and it turns out they need some serious fire power. They've called a 'Code Red,'" Jason said.

"I thought that was just a ranger myth," Rocky said.

"Nope. Reds have the most power, so enough of us together and we can do some serious damage," Jason said.

"Sounds like a plan, but we don't have powers," Rocky said.

"Tommy said he'd explain everything when we're on the ship. I don't know how this will plan out, but I need to know if you're interested," Jason asked.

"To save the world? Do you have to ask? I was a ranger once, it's in my blood," Rocky said.

"Let's find Tommy," Jason said.

Jason stopped in the hallway, causing Rocky to stop short as well.

"What's the problem, Jase," Rocky asked.

"Do you want to ask Meredith or at least tell her what you want to do," Jason asked.

"I'll talk to my wife, but, knowing her, she won't keep me from something if it's what I want to do," Rocky said.

They met Tommy in his room and announced they were on board. Tommy told them he'd contacted the other former red rangers and they were being rounded up and would meet them at the hanger that housed the ship they would be taking.

Andros had filled Tommy in on the details, but Tommy wasn't telling anyone until everyone was on board the ship.

On the way to the hanger, each one called their wife or fiance to tell them what they were doing.

Kimberly hadn't been happy, but she understood Tommy's desire to go on the mission. She made him promise he would return to her and Siobhan. Tommy promised, said I love you and hung up the phone.

Jason dialed Kat and told her the same story Tommy had Kimberly. Kat didn't say anything against Jason going. She told him to be careful and that she loved him. Jason told her the same and ended the call.

"How come you didn't get any yelling from her," Tommy asked.

"Because I face danger every time I go to work. Doing a ranger mission is a cake walk for her," Jason said.

Tommy smiled then his demeanor changed when he saw his brother-in-law heading toward him.

"Have you called Meri," Tommy asked.

"Just waiting till I saw you both again before making that call," he said.

"Look, Rocky, you don't have to go. I know you're back is giving you trouble every so often and I wouldn't want anything to happen to you," Tommy said.  
>"I know, but I want to go," Rocky said. He dialed his wife's cell number.<p>

"Didn't we just talk," she asked him, teasing in her tone.

"Tommy just got a call from Andros," he said.  
>Meredith immediately knew what he was going to say. Three months ago, she'd asked Tommy and Jason to leave Rocky out of any 'Code Red' that was called. She wanted her husband by her side and didn't want anything to happen to his back.<p>

"Yeah," she said.

"I want to help," he said, simply.

Meredith was afraid of this. She knew Rocky would feel obligated to help because of his ranger past.

"I don't want you to go," she said.

"I know, but I need to do this. I need to help protect humanity," he said.  
>Meredith was silent for a moment.<p>

"You really want to do this, don't you. You sure it's not just some misplaced male pride? Just because Jason and Tommy are being idiots and going off on some crazy mission, doesn't mean you have to. It doesn't change anything about you," she said, making sure he understood.

"Yes, Meri. I have to do this," he said.  
>"Nothing I say is going to change your mind, right," she said.<br>"I have to do this, babe," he said.  
>"I don't want you to go. I want you to stay here with me. We can wait for the guys to come back at the hanger, but please stay with me," she begged.<p>

"I have to go, babe. You know that," he said, hating that she felt so strongly against him leaving. He knew his marriage was going to be tested by this because they often agreed on most things.

"OK, if you feel you have to do it. You know how I feel, but I'm not about to be angry at you befor you go away on a dangerous mission. Please be careful and come home safely," she said.  
>"I will. I love you," he said.<br>"I love you, too," she answered back.  
>When the phone call ended, Meredith called Jason.<p>

"Meri, what's the matter," Jason asked.  
>"My husband just told me he's going on the stupid 'Code Red.' Promise me you'll watch his back. Both literally and physically," she asked.<br>"Of course," he said.

"Thanks. I would like him back in one piece, so don't let him do anything stupid," she said.

She hung up with Jason and called Tommy.

"Yeah, sis," he said.  
>"Getting Jason to ask Rocky if he wanted to go isn't keeping Rocky out of it, you know," Meredith said, her voice trying to hold an even tone.<p>

"Meri, Rocky would have been really upset with you and me if I hadn't asked him. You told me to keep him out of it. I don't have any control over Jason and what he does. You know that," Tommy said.  
>"Look, just bring him back. PROMISE me you'll return Rocky home in one piece. We have a lot of stuff to do," she said.<p>

"I promise I'll keep him safe, Meri," Tommy said.  
>"You stay safe, too. Last time I sent you off you nearly died on me. I'd like to keep that from happening a second time," she said.<br>"I will. Love you, sis," he said.

"Love you, too," she said, ending the call.

As Meredith placed the phone on the counter, she couldn't help but feel something was about to happen that she couldn't possibly prepare or accept. Meredith prayed everyone would return unscathed and she and Rocky could go back to working on making their family.

Rocky stood on the edge of the property, watching the former and current reds gather in front of the hanger. He knew Meredith didn't want him going on the mission, but he felt drawn to help his fellow rangers. He looked back at the exit to the hanger and back to the gathering crowd of reds. Twisting his wedding ring on his finger, he walked toward the crowd, hoping everything would work out and he would be back with Meredith in no time.

The red rangers met in the hanger. Everyone thought Rocky wasn't coming because he hadn't arrived at the hanger.

"Guess he changed his mind," Tommy said to Jason.

"Well, we'll do this without him, but it won't be the same," Jason said.

Just then they noticed a figure walking toward them.  
>"Don't forget me," Rocky said, approaching the rest of the rangers.<p>

"Glad you could join us," Tommy said.  
>"So, how exactly are we supposed to fight if we don't have powers any longer," Rocky asked.<br>Tommy motioned for the rest of the group to follow him into the hanger. They encountered a ship and, after lowering the ramp, the group followed Tommy on board.

Assembling around a table, the newer rangers were in awe that they were in the company of the originals and the greatest. Tommy was a ranger legend and Jason was the original red mighty morphin, Rocky, the ninjetti original.

After introductions, Tommy explained that he had been working with Billy and Andros to revitalize the power coins that were believed to have been lost. Tommy had used his original functioning zeo crystal to recharge Jason's old power coin. Rocky always had the power of the ninjetti inside of him, so he just needed to call forth the dormant energy.

Tommy and Andros explained that the remains of the Machine Empire were trying to uncover Serpentara. The red rangers were going to stop them.

"Any questions," Tommy asked.  
>"When do we get there," Carter asked.<p>

Tommy smiled at the group and Andros gave updates on the time frame for the mission. The group broke up and spent time preparing themselves for the mission and praying they would be sucessful without any losses to their team.

Unfortuntaely, when the chips were down for the Machine Empire, they carried off one of the reds, leaving the remaining members of the team in shock. While they had defeated the Empire and destroyed Serpentara, they had lost a ranger. Something that was devastating to the rest of the team.

***What happened? Did Meredith's bad feeling come true? Is one of her reds the one that didn't come home? Is that red missing or dead? Stick around.*** -mereditholiver


	44. A Tragic Ending?

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters. I own nothing but the character of Meredith.

A TRAGIC ENDING?

The Red Ranger only mission was finished. They had defeated the remaining members of the machine empire. They had successfully destroyed Serpentara. They had fought their biggest and most meaningful battle in all their years as power rangers, active or not. However, the success of the mission was tarnished by the fact that one of them was missing. One red ranger had been taken from the moon and no one was sure of the final outcome.

One red ranger sat stoically in the main briefing room on DECA trying to figure out what had happened.

Another red felt like punching something and it looked like a fellow red might be a good target.

Both reds were thinking about the one person they both loved that would be affected by what had happened. The one person to be horribly scared by this. She didn't deserve it. Not when everyone was back to being friends. Actually, none of them deserved this outcome.

When DECA announced they were landing at the station, both knew they would have major explaining to do. They both knew they weren't up for the task. The news they were set to deliver was something they had known was a possibility, but didn't really believe it would actually happen.

They had always believed the power would protect them, but, in the back of their minds, knew the power had limitations. No one is invincible. No one was immortal. The death of Zordon had proven that.

As the rest of the reds departed the ship, the two remaining reds walked down the ramp. How they both wished they were all laughing and telling stories about their days as rangers; kidding about how much time certain teammates spent in the juice bar with Kimberly or who's zord was the biggest and baddest. This mission didn't allow them to have that good-natured banter. Instead they were steeling themselves against what they were about to do.

As soon as they exited the hanger, they saw the three women huddled together. The women rushed toward them, only to see one of them falter.

Two of the woman reached the men and wrapped them in tight embraces and phrases like 'Don't ever do that again,' and 'What were you thinking' were overheard, but anyone observing the two men would know they hadn't heard a thing. Their focus was on the small figure shaking her head and wringing her hands.

The men disengaged themselves from the clinging women and walked to the lone woman.

She shook her head, "NO," she screamed. "You said you'd bring him back. You PROMISED me," she said. "Where is my husband," she asked.

"He didn't come back with us," one said.

"What," she asked, not understanding.

"We don't know what happened to him. He was taken off by some Cogs and we couldn't locate him before we had to get off the Moon," he said.

"Is he dead," she asked.

"I don't know," he answered.

"Where is he," she demanded.

"We don't know. We don't know where Rocky is," he said.

"You promised me you would bring him back, Tommy. I asked you not to bring this mission idea to him. I BEGGED you to leave him out of it," Meredith said, tears pouring down her cheeks.

"I know and I tried," Tommy said.

"You didn't try hard enough. And what about you, Jase? You were supposed to have his back like you did when we were rangers. How could something have happened if you were watching? Please tell me how," she asked.

"I don't know Meri. It was kind of crazy up there during the mission," Jason said.

Meredith wasn't hearing him. She was crying and looking at her brother.

"I'm sorry, Meri. I wanted to stay and look for him, but Andros said we had to get back. I'm sorry," Tommy said.

"I can't believe you. You promised you'd look out for him and then he goes missing," she said, looking at her brother.

"Meri, I…" Tommy started before Meredith cut him off.

"NO! No, I'm sorry. No, I tried my best. You PROMISED. I was living a perfect life with him until you dangled this carrot of taking back the mantle of a ninja ranger to save the world again. I need him. I love him. And now I have to listen to how you both tried your best and there wasn't anything else you could do. My husband is alive somewhere up there and you left him. You LEFT HIM. He never left you behind," she said, crying and yelling.

Tommy reached out to grab her arm but she pulled it away.

"Don't touch me. Don't come near me. Don't talk to me. I don't think I'll ever forgive you for what you did. You broke a promise to me and I don't think I'll ever forgive you for this. Just leave me the hell alone and don't bother me. That goes for you too Jase. I don't know why I didn't tell him about this before you did and let him know I didn't want him to go. That I begged you to not ask him. I'm going to have to live with that for the rest of my life. How can I look at you knowing what happened," she said.

"Meri, I'm your brother," he said.

"Not anymore. Life's a bitch. I mean it, Tommy. Leave me the hell alone. Don't bother me," she said. She turned around and walked away, leaving Tommy gaping in shock at what had just happened.

Meredith had told him to leave her alone. That she didn't have a brother. The pain he felt was a thousand times worse than when Kimberly broke up with him after her miscarriage. Bigger than the sting he'd felt when he had to break up with Kimberly to save her life. This was worse than him dying. He was losing a part of himself and he didn't know if he could live. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. He didn't know what he was supposed to do.

Jason watched Meredith walk away, hugging her waist as she approached Eric. Jason knew Meredith had kept in touch with several of the other rangers from other teams, but he didn't know she was friends with Eric until he saw Eric lead Meredith to his car and drive away.

He turned around to face Tommy who had suddenly become as white as a sheet. Kimberly was trying to console him, but Tommy was almost catatonic.

Tommy couldn't respond. He couldn't do anything except stand there and watch the spot his sister had occupied minutes before. He had no feeling left. He was vaguely aware of Kimberly's presence but he couldn't respond. He was still in shock from the whole Meredith confrontation. He had known she would be upset and sad by what happened, but he didn't expect her to turn her back on her brother. That had hurt him. Meredith had overheard him talking to Jason about a possible Reds-only mission and had begged him not to ask Rocky to go along. Meredith knew if Tommy asked, Rocky wouldn't dare say no. Whether it was macho male pride at the fact that Jason would be there or he actually had a desire to save the world again, she hadn't cared. She wanted Rocky to stay with her. Tommy hadn't listened. Thought his sister was just being too cautious. He'd agreed not to ask Rocky and had, instead, asked Jason to offer the mission to Rocky. Jason had agreed. Hindsight is always 20/20 and, right now, Tommy felt so empty and numb.

Kimberly tried desperately to get him acknowledge her, but was having little success.

Kimberly hoped she could come up with something soon because she was really scared for Tommy.

Katherine gathered Jason and directed him to her car. Katherine thought her husband was in the same state as Tommy, but he spoke when they got to the car.

"Why do I keep hurting her," he asked in a near whisper. Katherine wasn't sure she was supposed to respond, so she sat down inside the car. Jason climbed in right behind her.

"Tommy promised Meri that he wouldn't ask Rocky to participate, but I didn't promise. I'M the one that asked Rocky to come along. Tommy just didn't try to stop me. I promised my dearest friend that I would look out for him when we were rangers. I promised her that he would come back from our ranger battles. Now, he's missing and I didn't try to stop it," Jason said.

"I'm sure you did what you could," Katherine said, trying to be supportive.

"Don't, please. Thanks, Kat, but I know I'm responsible. It's my fault," he said.

Katherine didn't know what to say. She shifted the car into drive and left the hanger parking lot.

Eric glanced at his passenger. She hadn't said a word since she asked him to take her home. She sat in the car staring out the window, twisting the wedding ring on her finger.

Eric felt for Meredith. He'd become friends with both her and Rocky when he'd asked if Rocky needed any help at his dojo. Since Rocky was also working as a successful architect, Rocky took him up on his offer to help. Eric had even moved into the apartment Meredith and Rocky had lived in when they first purchased he dojo. He had seen the whole incident with Rocky during the mission. He, like Tommy and Jason, had begged Andros to let them search for Rocky. Andros had been adamant about them leaving right after the mission was completed.

He hadn't envied Jason and Tommy at all in the task they were to perform when the ship landed. Judging by Meredith's outburst and asking him to drive her home, she was blaming the two men for Rocky's disappearance.

"Meredith, do you have someone who can stay with you? I'd feel a lot better if you did," he said, trying to start a conversation.

"Probably. My parents or his parents can stay. God, how am I going to tell everyone about his disappearance. 'Hi everyone. Rocky went on a secret Power Ranger mission to the moon and he was kidnapped by some evil machines. Oh, by the way, Rocky spent his high school years as a Power Ranger.' That would go over really well with our parents," she said.

"You don't have to be blunt about it. You can tell him he was on an accident during a business trip," Eric offered.

"That might work. I just don't know how to explain it. I'm sure they'd think the worst and I'm not ready to do that," Meredith said.

Eric parked in front of the building. He opened the door for Meredith and helped her inside the building. He led Meredith to her apartment and helped her inside. Meredith entered and sat on the sofa. She curled her legs up under her and sat there, not looking at anything.

Eric was scared. He didn't know what to do for her. He was about to ask her if she wanted something when his cell phone rang.

"Hey, Tommy," he said.

"It's Kimberly. I don't have your number. How's Meri? Tommy hasn't said a word since she spoke with him and I'm worried about him," Kim said.

"She's said a bit. She's worried about how to explain things to his parents. She's worried about how she should explain everything. I don't know what to tell her," Eric said.

He thought some tea might help Meredith and filled the kettle and put it on the stove.

"Andros said he was going to plant a story about Jason and Rocky going with Tommy on a dig. Rocky will be kidnapped by savage villagers. It's corny, but he's certain people will accept it. After all, we used to have Zedd and Rita bringing strange monsters to life," Kim said.

"I'll tell Meri. I'm just concerned about how she's reacting. She thinks he's still alive," Eric said, pouring the boiling water into a mug.

"She would know. If Meri says he's alive, then we have to find him," Kim said.

"We," Eric questioned.

"Yes. WE. I blamed Meredith for Tommy going to that island and nearly getting killed. I was angry at her and Tommy when I yelled at her, but I shouldn't have done that. Tommy and I are adults and had made our own decisions. If she believes Rocky's alive, then I owe her to help find him. We all do. She never gave up on finding her brother and she's always believed in him. We can't give up on Rocky now," Kim said.

"OK. I'll talk to Meredith," Eric said.

"When Tommy was missing, Meri yelled at me because I was acting like he was dead. She reminded me that I loved him at one point and I owed it to him to believe he was still alive and until we had proof otherwise, I had to think that way. Of course I thought she was full of it and I told her so. I told her I believed he was dead and she needed to stop giving me false hope. I owe this to my 'sister,'" Kimberly said.

"But what if she doesn't want Tommy's help? You saw how she reacted to him after he returned. She told him to get out of her life. Do you think she's going to accept his assistance in finding Rocky," Eric asked.  
>"I don't know, but he's going to try to find him, regardless of how she feels," Kim said.<br>They both hung up the phone and wondered what to do about the wounded Oliver in their presence.

Meredith looked at the photo on the coffee table. It was of her and Rocky at their wedding. She thought back to that day and started weeping as she remembered their dance at their wedding reception.  
>They had danced to "Until You Come Back To Me," and the words never meant more to her than they did at this moment. Everything they had experienced as rangers and the normalcy of teenage life, both had returned to their soul mate. Meredith knew Rocky loved her completely and she knew she would be a shell of herself without her husband by her side.<p>

To her, Rocky was the ship and she was the light guiding him home. If he was out there, and she was certain he was, she was going to help lead him home. The problem was, she didn't have any idea of how to do it. And just like the song, she sent up a prayer, hoping he'd hear her and hang on until she could find him and bring him back where he belonged. In her arms.

***Is Meredith right and Rocky's alive? Is there hope for Meredith and Tommy's relationship? How will the rest of their friends help Meredith and Tommy through this?*** -mereditholiver


	45. Just exisiting

DISCLAIMER: Please see previous chapters because nothing has changed.

JUST EXISTING

Meredith spent the next few days, just existing. She accepted the condolences of her friends and family. She cried with Rocky's parents and with her own. She ignored pleas from Tommy and Kimberly to see her. She had Jason turned away, but allowed Kat to comfort her. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't think. She was swimming, barely aware of her surroundings, but acutely aware of the hole that was present in every aspect of her life.

She couldn't do anything but just exist. She continued as if on auto-pilot. She didn't know what she was going to do.

A week after the mission, Meredith was sitting in her kitchen, drinking tea when the doorbell rang.

She got off the stool to see who was at the door.

She was surprised to see Adam and Tanya with Jasmine. She opened the door and let them into the apartment.

She accepted hugs from both and took a squirming Jasmine from her mother.

"Meri, we have to talk," Adam said.

"About what, Adam," she asked.

"Rocky," Tanya answered.

Meredith took a deep breath. "I suppose you're going to tell me that he's most likely dead like Jason and I'm sure Tommy, think and that I have to accept things the way they are so I get on with my life. That this fantasy I have that he's still alive is stupid and pointless and is dragging out the pain that I will eventually feel when he's declared dead. That about cover it," she said.

"Actually, I think Rocky's very much alive," Adam said.

"Don't toy with me Adam. Everyone said in the beginning that they thought he was alive, but no one really believes it but me," she said.

"Mer, how do you know he's not dead," he asked her, looking into her eyes.

"Because my heart doesn't feel empty," she said.

"It's just like when everyone thought Tommy had been killed by that island explosion. You knew in your heart that your brother wasn't gone. You told everyone, shouted it to Kimberly, that if he was dead, you'd be the first person to feel that loss. You'd be the first person to grieve. You refused to grieve for him because he was still alive. You took that abuse from Kim after Tommy went missing because you knew he would come back. You had that faith. That's the faith you have now, so I know you're right. You believed when everyone else, except Rocky, thought you had lost your mind. That you couldn't accept the evidence that was right in front of you. Rocky defended your position and got everyone to see that you were right. We're going to get Rocky back, Meri. We're going to do it," Adam said.

"Do you have a time frame for me because I have a baby that's going to be born in about seven months and I'd like him to be there," she said.

Adam and Tanya's mouth's hit the floor. Neither knew Meredith was pregnant and the news was a shock.

"You're pregnant," Adam asked.

"Yeah. I suspected as much when Rocky left for the bachelor party. I was going to tell him over the phone, but I was blindsided by this mission. I wanted to tell him when he came back. I was supposed to welcome him home and tell him we were finally going to have a baby. You can see how that plan turned out," she said.

"Does anyone know," Tanya asked.

Meredith knew what she was trying not to say. "No, I haven't told Tommy because he was with Rocky and since I'm never speaking to him again, there's no reason for him to find out. Our parents know and so do Rocky's. It's not something I wanted to keep from them. My parents will respect my wishes to keep Tommy uninformed. If someone else tells him, I'll deal with it, but right now I don't want to think about my brother. I'm sitting here, alone, thinking about raising this baby as a single parent because of him and Jason. I love Tommy. I've stood by him through every stupid thing he's ever done. I've been his cheerleader and I've reminded him of things when he's forgotten so he could save face with Kimberly. He's been a third wheel in my life for far too long. I can hear Rocky telling me, 'It's amazing we got pregnant with Tommy around all the time.' I miss Rocky," Meredith said, sobbing. Tanya comforted her friend. She didn't know how she would cope if something happened to Adam. Meredith had some amazing strength, but shutting Tommy out of her life when she would need his support the most, shocked Tanya. She hoped the siblings made up soon because she knew they needed each other right now.

Meredith turned back to Adam. "How are we going to find him," she asked.

"I'm going to talk to Billy. There has to be some way of tracking him and I'm almost certain Billy would know how," Adam said.

"Do what you have to. If I can help, let me know, but I'm so tired and sick most of the time that I'm no good to anyone," Meredith said.

She sat down on the couch and put her head in her hands.

"Wait," she said, standing up and pacing again. "What if Billy tracked all the signatures from the Morphin' grid that belonged to previous reds. We know were all of them are, except for Rocky. If we search for the signature of rangers that have held the red ranger power, we should be able to find Rocky. His would be the only signature we couldn't identify. It's almost like the way Billy tracked the 'real' Tommy down. Maybe it would work for Rocky, too," Meredith said, her eyes dancing. She began to seriously think she'd get her husband back. Living in limbo wasn't something she was prepared to do for the rest of her life and she was beginning to get giddy with excitement.

"I'll call Billy right away. Maybe he can get started on it," Adam said, pulling out his cell phone.

"You're going to get him back, Meri. I know it," Tanya said as they watched Adam with anticipation.

"That hypothesis is worthy of experimentation," Billy said as he typed information into his computer.

"Do you think it might work," Adam asked.

"I'm going to try. If I can help bring Rocky home, I'll do it for Meri," Billy said.

"You managed to get Tommy back when everyone thought he was dead," Adam said.

"I'll start searching for red ranger signals. I'll call you if I know anything," Billy said.

"Thanks," Adam said hanging up the phone.

Billy continued typing information into his computer.

He glanced at the large screen in front of him. It was registering the various signals of rangers, former and current. He knew the general whereabouts of the current team, so he set about trying to figure out which signatures belonged to former rangers.

There was as cluster of rangers in the immediate area, within 30 miles of Meredith's home. Billy figured these belonged to Tommy, Jason and Eric, as well as Carter and TJ.

He picked up the phone and dialed Kimberly's home. He wanted to make sure that Tommy and Jason were still in the area.

"Hello," Kimberly answered.

"Kimberly, this is Billy," he said.

"Billy, how are you," she asked.

"I'm well. I was just checking to make sure that Tommy was still at your house," he said.

"Tommy's been in our room since we came home after the mission. He won't see anyone. Everyone wants to know about the 'dig' he went on and how Rocky ended up missing. He's handling this really badly. And it's worse become Meri won't speak to him," Kimberly said.

"Well, that's why I'm calling. I might have a way to find Rocky. I just need to make sure that Tommy and Jason are still in the general area," he said.

"Jason's with Katherine at their house. He isn't fairing much better. He's taken a leave of absence from the police department because he can't concentrate after what happened. Meri's not talking to him either," Kimberly said.

"I'm assuming Eric is still living above the dojo," he said.

"Yeah. He's there and he's been running things in Rocky's absence. TJ is living in an apartment near the college and Carter is somewhere near there. He's not going back to Lightspeed. He said he can't stand the thought that he 'failed' a red. Meri won't talk to me either, so I'm getting all my information from Tanya," Kim said.

"Well, I'm going to continue my search. I'm running a scan for ranger patterns, specifically red ranger signatures. Any unidentified patterns, I'm going to explore. I'll let you know if I find out anything," Billy said.

"Please. If you need help retrieving Rocky, let Tommy know. He'd love nothing more than to bring Meri's monkey boy home," Kim said.

"I will. Bye," Billy said.

"Bye," Kim said.

When she hung up the phone with Billy, she was feeling a great sense of relief. If anyone could bring Rocky back, it was Billy.

Even though he'd never talked about it, Kim knew Billy had been a driving force behind Tommy coming home after the explosion. Just when she'd given up on him returning, he'd come back to her. She knew Billy and Meredith were responsible.

She entered the bedroom she shared with Tommy.

"Billy just called. He thinks he might have a way of finding Rocky," she said.

Tommy looked at her and for the first time in a week, looked hopeful.

"How," he asked.

"He's searching for unidentifiable red ranger signatures. He knows where all the current and former reds are, so he thinks if he finds one that he can't identify, it's probably Rocky. He's supposed to call if he gets anything. I knew you'd want to help," Kim said.

"I do. Not having talked to Meri since she told me to get out of her life has left a huge hole. It's just as bad as when I shut you out of my life," he said.

"Well, just remember you have me, Siobhan. We need you to pull yourself out of this. I understand the need to help Meredith, but don't sacrifice yourself and everything we've got. Promise me," she asked.

"I promise," Tommy said, kissing Kimberly.

"I was going to wait to tell you this until things were a little calmer, but I won't be able to keep it a secret much longer. Tommy, we're going to be parents again," she said.  
>Tommy's mouth hit the floor.<br>"You're pregnant," he said, a smile crossing his face for the first time in a week.  
>"Yeah. I wanted to wait until we had a conclusion to this Rocky thing, but I can't hide it much longer since I've been so sick in the mornings," she said.<br>Tommy kissed her again, showing how excited he was the she was, again, carrying his child. He promised he was going to be there throughout her entire pregnancy this time and nothing was going to ruin that for him. His smile dropped off his face when he realized his sister was miserable. She wanted to have children with Rocky and now, with Rocky's fate in limbo, she may never get her dream. He began to feel guilty for feeling so happy when his sister wasn't.

Kimberly sensed his feelings and knew it was about Meredith. She wrapped him in a hug and prayed they would locate Rocky and salvage the relationship between the Oliver twins.

"That's odd," Billy said out loud to no one. He scanned the area again and was detecting a faint red ranger signal. Since the signal was coming from the moon and all the reds had returned to Earth, the signature had to belong to Rocky.

Billy immediately dialed Tommy's number.

"Tommy, I found him," Billy said, as soon as Tommy picked up the phone.

"Where is he," Tommy asked.

"Looks like he's behind something that is shielded on moon. I don't know any more than that," Billy said.

"I'll call Jason, Zack and Adam and we'll meet you at your place," Tommy said and hung up the phone.

Tommy made the quick phone calls and just said for everyone to meet at Billy's. Tarzan was coming home.

***They found Rocky! What happened to him? How will he react to Meredith's pregnancy surprise?*** -mereditholiver


	46. Holding On

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters because nothing has changed.

HOLDING ON

The pain was incredible. He had never felt anything like it in his life and, if he got out of this alive, he was going to make a point to never feel it again.

He closed his eyes. Not that it made any difference. He'd been in this darkness for what seemed like years, but was probably only days.

He should have listened to his wife and stayed with her. Now, he was trapped. He was held by an unknown source. He hadn't seen anyone since he was brought here and he had no idea why they had taken him. Someone had been delivering him food that's only purpose was to keep him alive.  
>"Alive for what," he said out loud to no one but talking made him feel less lonely.<p>

He wasn't able to lie down. He was only able to stand in the limited space and sit in the chair provided for him. He spent much of his time trying to sleep and ignoring the gnawing pain in his chest. He felt like he was in mourning.

He probably was. He hadn't returned from the mission so Meredith probably thought he was dead. He couldn't believe the pain he felt in his heart at that thought.

He held onto the hope that, when Tommy was missing and everyone thought he was dead, Meredith had known he was still alive somewhere. She'd figured out that her brother had been replaced by a clone. She'd fought everyone in their circle of friends when she made that pronouncement and had taken the criticism of her friends. When Tommy was brought back to them, he'd felt relieved that Meredith had been proven right.

He had supported Meredith through that ordeal and he knew they could weather any storm in their path. He hung his head and touched his chin to his chest. "Babe, I'm trying to figure out how to come home. Just hold on for me. I love you," he said aloud. Then, he slipped into unconsciousness.

He was totally unaware of the passage of time. He didn't know how long he'd been in this place or what was happening in the outside world. He just kept praying that his wife was holding on for him.

Rocky sighed and sat down on the chair. He started thinking about all the times he'd had with Meredith and all the memories they had and what memories he wanted to create with her.

He thought about the first time he'd set eyes on Meredith Oliver.

_Meredith was sitting with her twin brother Tommy and his girlfriend Kimberly. She appeared to be waiting for someone, she was casting little looks toward the door. _

_Rocky was the new guy in school, but he already knew about Meredith, Tommy, Kimberly, Trini and Zack and their friendships. He also knew about Jason, Meredith's boyfriend. Everyone at the school thought he and Meredith were the perfect couple. Rocky knew she was waiting for Jason, but he couldn't help but wish she was waiting for him._

_Jason entered the Juice bar a few minutes later, sitting next to Meredith and giving her an eager kiss. Meredith smiled at him and returned to her conversation with Kimberly. _

_Jason and Tommy excused themselves from the table and came to join Rocky and his friend, Adam, for some sparring.  
>Rocky and Adam had been welcomed into the close circle of friends and were forging their own relationships with the group.<em>

_When Meredith was paired with Rocky for a project, he was elated. He couldn't wait to learn more about the beautiful girl with a knack for wearing the cutest purple clothes. He eventually learned the secret behind the purple and continued his friendship with her._

_When Jason broke up with Meredith, Rocky was the one that got Meredith to confide in him. She hadn't revealed her secret to anyone but Tommy. Rocky felt honored the Meredith trusted him and thought enough of their friendship to tell him what was bothering her._

_Rocky hadn't intended to kiss her that night. He had wanted to be with her, to be a shoulder for her to rely on and be what she needed._

_That night was the beginning of a whole new chapter for Rocky. He and Meredith had a wonderful relationship. They worked together and separately on projects, yet kept their relationship healthy. They went to school dances and hung out with their friends.  
>When Jason returned to take the gold ranger powers, Meredith and Jason's previous relationship was brought to the forefront. Jason had begun dating Katherine and Meredith had forgiven Jason for what happened in their past.<em>

_Following the trip to Phaedos, everything had changed for them. Jason had been hurt at the end of the trip and Meredith had decided to help him regain his memory any way she could. Rocky, allowing his male pride to get in the way, had been angry. He loved Meredith but couldn't handle her being with someone else, even if it was pretend. He'd ended the relationship and tried to move on to other women.  
>They had only been apart a few hours before Rocky realized he couldn't be without her. However, once again, his stupid male ego was keeping him from reaching out to Meredith, promising to be there when the ordeal with Jason was solved.<br>_

Not telling Meredith he would be there for her when Jason was better, was the biggest regret he had. Being tied up in an unknown place offered a lot of time for reflection and that was a big mark on his record. He wished he could go back and redo that moment in his life. He knew, if he'd said those words to Meredith, she wouldn't have tried to kill herself. She wouldn't have been suffering from the loss of their relationship and her brother's distance. Rocky knew he'd failed her.

Sitting there, unable to do anything but think made him see that was probably why he was afraid of failing her now. Going on this mission that landed him here was his way of doing something for himself and not living his whole life for Meredith.

Only now, he realized, he didn't have a life without Meredith.  
>Rocky continued to dwell on all the things they had done together. Prom, graduation, moving in together. He knew she was scared to leave Tommy, but had moved to another city with him so he could pursue his dream while she worked on her dream.<p>

When she left her house and moved into that studio loft he had created above the dojo, neither of them knew if the dojo would be successful. Neither of them knew if Rocky would be able to make a living for the two of them. He worried a lot about Meredith not wanting to be a burden and quitting school.  
>That fear stayed with Rocky for months until the dojo turned a profit. He'd saved for his entire high school career for this moment and, with a little help from his parents, he made it a reality and was supporting himself and Meredith.<p>

Rocky knew that, despite the unknown they were venturing into, the fact that Meredith was coming with him and working with him, proved she was the one for him. (As if he ever doubted it.)

The day they got married, he felt so privileged. He'd gotten the speech from both Tommy and his father and Rocky promised to protect Meredith from anything and everything. Little did Dr. Oliver know that Rocky had been a protector of the entire world and protecting Meredith was a role he would gladly take.

They danced, laughed and enjoyed some 'down' time with their friends. They rushed off on a honeymoon that can only be described as blissful. He had never felt as complete has he had since he and Meredith had married.

He remembered how their relationship had changed with the new roles they took on in their lives. The storms that had appeared in the form of her brother and Kimberly breaking up and Kimberly having Tommy's baby.

Rocky had told Meredith he thought she should let them figure things out for themselves. Meredith had listened to Rocky, but, because it involved Tommy, she couldn't stay quiet.

Then they'd dealt with Tommy being missing. Kimberly had been convinced he was dead and Rocky had felt the same and was about to tell Meredith that when she assured him that Tommy wasn't dead.

Meredith's conviction in her belief was so strong that Rocky couldn't help but believe what she was saying and stood by her, defended her.

He had done so gladly because he loved her and believed in her.  
>Now, trapped in this place, Rocky didn't know if he would ever see his wife again.<p>

The pain in his chest worsened as he thought of Meredith struggling without him. Being without her made the ache worse still. He sent up another prayer that they would find their way back to each other.

Just as he slipped into unconsciousness again, he thought he heard Meredith's lilting voice asking him to hold on until she found him and he was back in her arms.

He allowed a smile to form on his face as he fell asleep, believing Meredith was going to find him and he'd be home.

***Rocky's thoughts as he's held captive. Who has done this to him and why? Are the other former rangers on their way to find him? Will Meredith forgive her brother and Jason for what happened? Will Rocky return to her?*** -mereditholiver


	47. All or Nothing

DISCLAIMER: Please read previous chapters. I still own nothing but the character of Meredith.

ALL OR NOTHING

The four former rangers met Billy's house to discuss how they were going to get Rocky back.

"I don't know if Andros is willing, but maybe we can use him and the spaceship to get there. I'm not sensing anything that indicates we need to use morphers, so we don't need any special powers," Billy said.

"I'll call him," Tommy said.

He stepped into the other room to call Andros.

"How's married life, Jase," Zack asked.

"Great. Chloe is a joy and, well, I wasn't going to say anything, but Kat's pregnant again," Jason said.

"That's great. Have you told anyone else," Zack said, laughing at his friend.

"No. This thing with Rocky has really hit us all hard and we didn't want to wave this news in front of everyone, especially since we're still unsure about Rocky. It wouldn't be fair. Once we know what happened to Rocky, we'll let everyone know. How are things with you and Aisha," Jason asked.

"Busy. She was just offered the assistant vet position at the San Diego zoo. She's seriously considering it, especially since the kids are little right now and can handle a move," Zack said.

"What's that going to do with your record company," Adam asked.

"I can work from anywhere. I'll probably travel to LA from time to time, but I can set up a studio anywhere I want," Zack said.

"What about the girls," Jason asked.

"They'll probably notice their grandparents aren't right around the corner, but Alyssa and Allison are young. They'll think it's a big adventure. Aisha thinks San Diego is a great place to raise the girls, so I'm happy with whatever she decides," Zack said.

Jason and Adam nodded.

"How is medicine, Dr. Park," Zack asked.

"Tiring, but enjoyable. I'm challenged everyday by something and I love meeting my patients. Tanya loves spending time at home with Jasmine now. She's considering having another one. I think she wants a boy this time," Adam said.

"Is she going to sing anymore," Jason asked.

"You didn't know? Zack signed Tanya to his company. She's making the decisions for her next album. She's deciding what to do about her career," Adam said.

Tommy rejoined the group. "Andros said we can go anytime. He wants to get Rocky back just as badly," Tommy said.

"Well, let's head to the hanger," Billy said.

On the drive to the hanger, Zack asked Tommy life was with Kimberly and Siobhan.

"Great. I'm just sorry so much time passed between us getting back together. When I asked her before I took that island job, she told me she wasn't ready. That's part of the reason I went. To give us space and see if she wanted to get married. When I came home, she was ready to marry me that day, but I wasn't ready. I had to deal with what felt like betrayal because she had thought I was dead. I realized why she thought what she did and we moved passed that and got engaged. Now the wedding is weeks away and she just told me last night that she's pregnant again," Tommy said, smiling at the memory. "We have the family we had always talked about in high school. It just feels right," Tommy said.

"We're just glad you two got your heads screwed on the right way," Zack said.

"Yeah. I may have known the devotion you and Kimberly had for each other, but I was beginning to have serious doubts you two would find your way back to each other," Billy said.

"Yeah, Tommy kept sabotaging the relationship somehow," Adam said, smiling at Tommy.  
>"Hey, it wasn't my idea. I only went off to the island to give her some space to think about it. I didn't know I would be almost killed in the process," Tommy said.<p>

"Wait, Kim's pregnant, too," Jason asked.  
>Tommy nodded. "That's funny. Kat's pregnant again, too. I know Chloe's not a year yet, but she wanted to have them close together. I think she wanted twins. She always thought you and Meri had the greatest relationship," Jason said.<br>"Meri's always been my best friend. Not having her around for a week has seemed like an eternity. I just hope this works. This is it. It's all or nothing. We bring Rocky back. There's no other option," Tommy said.

Their friendly banter ended when they arrived at the space ship hanger. Tommy and Jason had left this place ten days ago on the worst day of their lives. Now they returned, hopeful they would be successful again in their mission.

Andros met the six and they headed into the ship. Billy plugged the map into the ship's computer so the group could study it on the way to the moon.

"I won't know until we get closer if there is anyone guarding Rocky. We just have to hope that if it is Cogs or Putties, we'll be able to defeat them without much difficulty," Billy said.

They studied the information Billy had gathered, which wasn't much.

"I guess when we land, we'll head for this location," Tommy said, pointing to the source of the signature. "Well, have to be careful."

DECA announced their approach to the moon and the six friends stood by the door, waiting to get on the moon.

"I've got a resonator that will render this force field useless. Once whatever is being hidden is revealed, we'll have a better idea of what we have to do," Billy said.

He activated the resonator and suddenly the moon palace of Rita was revealed.

"Interesting," Billy said, as the rest of the group approached the outer wall of the palace.

Tommy and Jason started to climb the wall. Zack and Adam followed next then Andros and Billy.

They landed on the other side with a soft thud.

"It looks like no one's home," Tommy said.

"Affirmative. I'm picking up no additional life signs except for the one we're almost certain belongs to Rocky," Billy said.

Watching their surroundings, the group entered the palace and proceeded into the great hall.

"This way," Billy said, pointing to the left corridor.

They followed, keeping a look out for anything that could attack.

"There's a doorway here," Billy said, stopping in front of a wall.

"I don't see it," Tommy said.

"Any ideas," Jason asked.

Billy felt the bricks on the wall. When one moved under his touch, he pushed it. The wall swung open to reveal a set of stairs leading down.

"Let's go," Adam said.

The six rangers went down the stairs, trying to anticipate what they would encounter.

At the bottom of the steps, they went right, since it was the only way to go.

Tommy didn't need Billy's guidance to tell him they were close. They rounded one corner and Tommy saw him.

His brother-in-law was sitting against the wall, his red ninja uniform torn in various places. The way he was leaning against the wall, he looked like he'd given up.

"Rocky," Tommy shouted.

He reached his friend and felt for a pulse. Just then Rocky began to stir.

"Rocco! It's Tommy. We're going to get you back home to Meredith," he said.

Jason came behind Tommy with a key. Tommy cocked an eyebrow at the sight, but said nothing.

They unlocked the cuffs that were binding Rocky to the pillar and his feet together.

"Can you walk," Tommy asked.

"Where's Meri? Please, tell me she's OK," he asked.

"She's fine. She's waiting for you," Tommy said.

"Remember when you said you didn't want to see Jason's face and my face first thing after you were rescued? Well, the same thing goes for me. I'd much rather see Meri than Jason's face after this. Yours isn't much better," Rocky said in a weak voice.

"You wound me, DeSantos," Jason said.

Rocky smiled a small smile before collapsing on Tommy and Jason.

The other rangers helped carry him back to the ship. No one tried to stop them as they left the palace and the moon with him.

Jason kept looking around, the whole time thinking that finding and rescuing Rocky was entirely too easy. Especially after what they had been through before Rocky was taken.

Andros and Billy ran scans on Rocky aboard DECA.

"He's severely dehydrated. These wounds don't look too severe. He's also exhausted. I'm sure keeping himself positive in that environment had to be awful for him," Andros said.

"He's going to need his sleep, so I suggest we let him do that. We have a three hour trip back. Have you thought about how you'll tell your sister," Billy asked Tommy.

"I'm not telling her a thing. I'm going to let Rocky tell her that he's alive. Seeing him walk to his wife with open arms is all I need to see," Tommy said.

"Despite what happened with her," Billy asked.

"Meredith is my sister and she loves me. She couldn't forgive me for what happened. This may welcome me back, but I didn't do it for that reason. I did it because Meredith loves Rocky and she never gives up on her friends and loved-ones. She never gave up on me," Tommy said.

Billy gave a nod of understanding and went back to the computer screen. Tommy strolled out of the room.

Tommy saw Jason, who looked at him. "What," Tommy asked.  
>"Meri still might not be willing to forgive us," Jason said.<br>"I know. But if I can bring joy back into her life by giving her back her soul mate, I'll do it. If she still doesn't want to see me, then I'll have to accept it. Jase, Meri's always been my best friend. I admit, I've taken her for granted. I've always assumed that no matter the problem, she would always be there, standing with me or fighting beside me. She's the one person I've been able to count on, even when I couldn't count on myself. I should have listened to her, but I didn't. I did what I thought was best and assumed she would support the decision. My pride and ego caused Meri such heartache, that I wouldn't forgive myself, either. Meri needs to be whole. If I get to be a part of her life after this, that's great. If not, then I accept it. I won't like it, but I won't have any other choice," Tommy said.

Rocky realized he was laying down. It was a position he hadn't been able to get into for more than a week at least. He slowly opened his eyes and cringed at the lighting. Being in the near darkness had caused a sensitivity to the normal lighting in the room. He took a quick look and closed his eyes. He realized he was on a DECA. He'd been rescued by Jason, Tommy, Zack Adam, Billy and Andros. He had limited memory of his time in his prison, but he was glad he couldn't remember it. The thing he wanted to remember was Meredith. He thought about every aspect of their relationship while he was imprisoned. He also remembered that, just when he felt the worst and was about to give up, he heard what sounded like Meredith's voice, telling him to hang on, she would find him and he would come back to her.  
>He'd wanted to believe it was true, but he was starting to lose hope. Now, here he was, heading back to Meredith's arms. He planned to do nothing but hold his wife. He wanted to continue working on that family they both desperately wanted.<p>

He closed his eyes and put his arm over his face. He hoped the headache he had would go away soon because it totally sucked.

Tommy entered the room and saw Rocky moving about. "You awake there, Rocky," he asked.  
>"Yeah, just have an awful headache from these damn lights. Can you turn them down a bit? Billy said I might need to wear sunglasses for a while to get used the light again," Rocky said.<br>Tommy lowered the lighting level for Rocky. He approached the table that held the man he thought of as a brother. "Want to talk about it," he asked.

"What's there to talk about? Last thing I remember was being carried off. Most of the bits in between are blurry. The times I remember there was horrible pain and I tried to focus on my love for Meri. Then the thought of her not being with me or her missing me would become unbearable. The next thing I clearly remember was seeing you and Jason," Rocky said.  
>"So you don't have any idea why the Cogs carried you off," Tommy asked.<br>"Haven't a clue. Doesn't appear they tortured me too much, but I don't remember what happened while I was there," Rocky said.  
>"We should be home soon. This time has been really rough on Meri. She blamed Jason and I for you getting 'lost.' She told me she never wanted to see me again. Said the same to Jason. As far as she was concerned, she didn't have a brother. And I didn't blame her one bit for her attitude. I'd feel the same way if it involved Kimberly. I haven't spoken to her since. I just know I had to see if I could find you. She did the same for me," Tommy said.<p>

"Meri shouldn't be mad at you and Jason. I wanted to go. It was my decision. She told me not to go, but I had to see if I could help humanity. I was naive to think that it would go smoothly. I just can't wait to get back to her," Rocky said.  
>"We should be landing at the hanger in a few minutes. I'll call Eric and make sure Meri's still home," Tommy said.<br>"Where would she be," Rocky asked.  
>"She might be with our parents. I haven't been to their place since the mission because of how Meri feels. Mom and Dad have come by to see me and Siobhan. They've been trying to get Meri to AT LEAST say she'll talk to me, but she won't budge," Tommy said.<p>

Just then Jason entered the room carrying a bag. He held it up. "Thought you might want to change your clothes," Jason said. Rocky sat up on the edge of the bed and let the wave of dizziness pass. He took the bag from Jason. "Thanks."

Tommy and Jason left the room so Rocky could get changed.  
>A few minutes later, Rocky came out wearing sunglasses, a blue t-shirt and blue jeans.<br>"Are we getting close," Rocky asked, exhaustion seeping out of every pore.

"Andros said we were landing in a few. Feels like that now," Tommy said.  
>Adam came into the room to tell them they had, indeed, landed at the hanger.<br>Rocky took a few halting steps out of the room, trying to get his equilibrium. He followed Jason and Tommy off the ship.

Tommy made a call to Eric to make sure Meredith was still in her apartment.  
>"I haven't seen her leave and I've been in the front working on the books," Eric said.<br>"Thanks, man," Tommy said, ending the call.

He and Jason helped the weakened Rocky into Tommy's Jeep. Jason climbed into his Mustang and both vehicles headed toward town and, hopefully, redemption in Meredith's eyes.

***Does Meredith welcome Jason and Tommy back into her life? Is Rocky OK after his ordeal? Will the former rangers have some normalcy in their lives now?*** -mereditholiver


	48. Taken

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters. Nothing has changed.

TAKEN

Jason and Tommy pulled up in front of the dojo. Rocky eased out of the car with some help from Tommy.  
>"Thanks. I think I can make it from here. Maybe I'll take the service elevator up to the apartment. Surprise her," Rocky said.<br>He went into the dojo through a side entrance and opened the service elevator.

He carefully unlocked the door to the apartment, closing the door quietly.

He slipped into the apartment, spying his wife laying on the couch.  
>She appeared to be sleeping, clutching photographs. Her puffy and damp cheeks a sign that she'd most likely cried herself to sleep.<br>He eased his way toward the couch and said, "Babe."  
>Meredith stirred but didn't open her eyes. "Rocky," she said in a sleepy voice<p>

'I must be dreaming,' she thought. She was hearing his voice like he was standing right next to her as he had done so many times before. She felt the tears hit her closed eyes and wanted nothing more than to stop the vivid memories.

Rocky neared the couch. "Babe, it's me," he said.  
>Meredith opened her eyes and took a second to focus on the site in front of her.<br>"Rocky," she squeaked out.  
>Rocky nodded his head.<br>Meredith stared at him, hesitant to jump up and feel the pain of this being a dream.

"Are you really here? Or am I having a dream? Or are you a spirit," she said, nearing Rocky.  
>"I'm real, babe. I came back to you. Just like I promised," he said.<br>Meredith stared at him. She reached her hand out and took his hand. Realizing it was a solid form, she threw herself into his arms and felt his strong arms wrapped around her.  
>"I thought I'd lost you," she said, closing her eyes as she listened the the sound of his heart beating.<p>

"Nah. I just got held up for a while," he said, smiling down at her.  
>Meredith looked into his brown eyes and felt like a weight was gone off her shoulders. Then she noticed the fatigue on his face.<br>"Oh, my God, Rocky, you must be exhausted. Did they check you out," she asked, ushering him toward the stairs and the bedroom.  
>"Yeah, I'm fine. Just dehydrated and exhausted. I had to see you before I fell asleep. I had to make sure I was really home. I've missed you so much, babe," he said, kissing her.<br>Meredith savored the kiss from her husband. She had thought she'd never get another one from him. Figured her days of being a 'babe' were gone when Rocky was taken away from her.

Rocky looked into her eyes. "Meri, what's wrong," he asked.

Meredith wasn't surprised. Despite the days spent apart and the ordeal he'd been through, he knew something was on her mind.  
>"I got some news while you were away on the mission," she said, sitting next to him on the bed.<p>

"Not bad," he said, looking at her face.  
>"No. Nothing bad. It's nothing that won't keep until you wake up. It's fine.," she said.<p>

"Are you sure, babe? If you need to tell me something, you know you can, right," Rocky said.

"I know, but you're exhausted. We'll talk about all this later, but right now, you need to get some sleep. I'm going to call our parents and let them know you're home and then I'll join you," she said.  
>"Sounds like heaven," he said, kissing her nose. He slipped off his shoes and grabbed a pair of pajama pants from the drawer. He took off his clothes, pulled on the pants and crawled under the covers.<p>

Meredith kissed his cheek, pulled the blankets around him and headed back downstairs to call their friends and family and inform them that Rocky was back where he belonged.

She picked up her phone to call Kimberly, then put the phone down. She figured her brother had something to do with bringing her husband home, but she wasn't ready to forgive him for what happened. Not yet anyway. She wanted Tommy to understand that he couldn't take her for granted all the time. She had a life to live and she, and Rocky, were going to live it, together.

She called her parents and told them that Rocky had been released. Meredith hadn't been made aware of what was happening because the Rangers that rescued him didn't want anyone to spoil their ability to surprise the enemy, she had told them. Her parents were happy and Rocky's parents were relieved their son was back and, other than needing about a week's worth of sleep, was fine. Meredith told them she hadn't mentioned the baby to him because he was so tired and she wanted him to be awake and aware when she told him the good news.

She had just hung up with his parents when she got a disturbing phone call.

"Hello," she said.

"Meri, I've been kidnapped. Tell Tommy," Kim said in a frantic, near whisper voice.  
>"What! Who kidnapped you," Meredith asked, not sure exactly what was happening.<p>

"It was..." then the phone was cut off. Meredith tried to get a hold of Kim, but the phone rang a fast busy signal.

She stared at the phone and immediately called Tommy.  
>Meredith didn't know what was happening, but it didn't take a former power ranger to know it wasn't good.<p>

***Rocky's home. (And he won't be a clone.) Kimberly called and has been kidnapped. Is it true? What's happening in our ranger universe?*** MERRY CHRISTMAS! You guys are the reason I do this! -mereditholiver


	49. Not Gonna Like It

DISCLAIMER: See previous. Nothing's changed.

NOT GONNA LIKE IT

"Want to come inside and see Kim and Siobhan," Tommy asked as they pulled up to his house.

"For a few, then I want to get home. I feel like I've checked out on Katherine for the last week and I want to make it up to her," Jason said.  
>Tommy got to the front door and saw it was ajar. Sensing something out of place, Tommy and Jason immediately went on guard. Jason's police training kicked in and he and Tommy searched the house.<br>"Kimberly," Tommy shouted through the house.

He and Jason searched the entire house, top to bottom and, despite Kimberly's car in the driveway, the only thing they found was a sleeping Siobhan in her crib. Kimberly was gone.

Tommy collapsed on the couch, Jason immediately on the phone, calling the police to report her missing.  
>"What happened," Tommy asked.<p>

"I don't know. There doesn't seem to be any clue about where she's gone or what happened," Jason said, looking around the room.

Tommy's cell phone rang. Jason, acting like a cop, picked up the phone before Tommy could reach it. He saw the readout was for Meredith's phone.  
>"What's up, Mer," Jason asked.<br>Meredith was shocked that Jason answered Tommy's phone.  
>"I just got a call from Kim saying she'd been kidnapped. Is something going on," she asked, concern for her friend and brother canceling out the anger she'd held onto for the last two weeks.<p>

"Tommy and I came back to his house after saving Rocky and found the door ajar and Siobhan was alone in the house," Jason said.  
>"Something must have happened for her to leave her daughter. She would never do that," Meredith said.<br>"That's what I thought. Tommy's sitting on the couch and hasn't said a word. Do you want to talk to him? We're waiting for the police to show up. I'm the first on scene I guess, so I need to secure the area," he said.  
>"Yeah. Thanks, Jase," Meredith said. Jason didn't need to ask for what because he knew.<br>"No problem. I wouldn't do that for just anyone," he said, handing the phone to Tommy. "It's Meri," he said.

Tommy took the phone and Jason did another search of the house.  
>"Meri," he said.<br>"Yeah, it's me. I'm sure Kimberly's going to be found. It's probably nothing serious," she said, knowing full well that Tommy could see right through her platitudes.

"She left Siobhan alone. She'd never do that unless she was forced to and you know that," he said.

"Do you want me to come over there," she asked.  
>"You shouldn't leave Rocky. He just got home," Tommy said.<p>

"He's going to sleep for hours. He's really exhausted. I'll make him some sandwiches and leave a note to call when he gets up, just in case I'm not home. I'll be there in fifteen minutes. Don't do anything until I get there," she said.  
>Tommy sat the phone down, not noticing the activity that was building in his house. Jason directed the activity until his captain arrived on the scene.<p>

"Scott, what do you have," Captain Pearson asked.  
>"I had spent the day with my friend Tommy and we arrived back here and found the door ajar. Tommy and myself entered the home. He was concerned for his fiancee and baby daughter. We found nothing strange except that the baby was alone and Kim's car was still in the driveway. We didn't do a more thorough search of the house because we wanted to call you," Jason said.<br>"You do realize that you're going to be too close to this, right," the captain said.  
>"I understand that sir, but I would like to be involved. Both Tommy and Kimberly are very good friends of mine and I would like to be a liaison to him and his family until Kimberly is found," Jason said.<br>The captain nodded his head and went off to find his officers and prepare to take a statement from both Jason and Tommy.

Fifteen minutes later, Meredith arrived at the house. She was shocked at the activity surrounding the home. She was stopped by an officer in the driveway. She asked to see Jason and tried to explain that she was Tommy's sister and he'd asked her to come and be a support for him and help with his daughter.  
>Jason poked his head of the door. "Let her in. Dr. Oliver requested his sister, Dr. DeSantos, be brought over here for support. Captain Pearson is aware that she was coming and she is allowed to enter the scene," Jason said.<p>

The officer stepped aside and allowed Meredith to enter walk up the drive and enter the house. She slipped passed Jason into the foyer.  
>"I've not seen you act in such an official capacity before. It's kind of weird. Like we're back in high school," Meredith said.<br>"Yeah, it is a bit odd. Tommy's in there. I'm not working the case since I was with Tommy when we discovered Kim was missing and since I'm so close to both of them. I will keep Tommy apprised of everything that is happening. Go and see him. He needs someone right now," Jason said.  
>Meredith squeezed Jason's arm, both in gratitude for what he'd just done and for what he was doing for Tommy.<p>

"Bro," Meredith said, upon entering the living room.

Tommy was off the couch in a flash and had Meredith wrapped in a hug. One that was almost cutting off her air.  
>He released her and kissed her forehead. "You know I'm sorry and I'd take it back if I could," he said.<br>"I know. Rocky's home now, so let's forget it. We have to find Kim and get her back. Any idea what happened," she asked.

Tommy shook his head. "No. Nothing. No clues, no threats. She hasn't even gotten a note in weeks from her stalker, so we figured the engagement had scared them off. Guess we were wrong," he said.  
>"You think the stalker got to her," Meredith asked, sitting on the couch.<p>

"I don't know what to think, Meri," Tommy said.

Jason entered the room. "The guys are finished with the house and are heading to process the evidence. They've set up a trace on the phone. Someone is going to remain here in case you get a ransom call or something. I called Adam, Zack and Billy to come over. Think we can go some place more private to talk. I don't think we want everyone to hear about what happened a few hours ago," Jason said.  
>Tommy pointed to the secret entrance to the basement. Meredith said good bye to her brother, and walked out of the house to her car. She started the Jeep and headed for the wooded trail that led to the outside entrance of Tommy's 'fortress.' He'd never explained why he felt the need to build it, but he wanted to make sure he knew what was happening in the world despite the fact he wasn't a ranger any longer. She parked off the trail and found herself standing with Adam who was followed by Zack and Billy.<p>

"Do you remember," Zack asked Adam, who shrugged. "Everything looks the same here," Adam said.  
>"You guys have no sense of direction. It's just like in high school," Meredith said, smiling. She approached a tree and pushed a knot on the tree. It opened a door and she entered with the others close behind.<br>"Meri, how's Rocky," Adam asked as they walked down the passageway to Tommy's secret lair.  
>"Sleeping. I came here to help Tommy. Jase, anything," she asked when she arrived in the room with her brother and Jason.<p>

"I contacted Billy a while ago. He went over the readings he had of this place while we were rescuing Rocky," Jason said.  
>"While we were gone, an evil energy came into the house and took Kimberly," Billy said.<br>"Any idea on who or what it was," Tommy asked.  
>"No. But there is something interesting about this evil energy signature," Billy said.<br>"What's that, Billy," Meredith asked.

"It's a match for the evil that surrounded the letters Kimberly had received," Billy said.

"Well, that's kind of a given, Billy, especially since she's gone now," Tommy said, running his fingers through his hair.

"I know, but it also matches the energy signature that surrounded the palace where Rocky was held," Billy said.  
>Everyone's mouth's dropped open. It suddenly occurred to them that the mission to the moon and the kidnapping of Rocky was a set-up to get the former rangers away from Earth and Kimberly.<p>

"You mean someone or something orchestrated that elaborate battle on the moon just to kidnap my husband and then Kimberly," Meredith asked, unable to fathom the evil planning that the scenario involved.

"I don't think whatever it was cared if it was Rocky, Tommy or Jason. I think it needed a red that would cause those of us left behind to go back and save him. If the target was really Kimberly, then taking one of them would have had us away from Kim. She wouldn't have us watching over her," Billy said.  
>"OK, but what about us females? We aren't exactly shy little flowers. We have been known to take care of ourselves and have saved you guys numerous times. Did it think we would be able to save Kim if we were called to do so," Meredith asked.<p>

"Again, kidnapping a red would have left you guys vulnerable. Think about it, Mer: if Jason was kidnapped, Katherine would have been useless because she would be consumed with worry about her husband. You would have been upset because of your history with Jason. Kim would have been distracted because Jason is her oldest friend. She wouldn't have been as aware as she might have been otherwise. Tommy would have felt responsible and would have wanted to get him back. If it was Tommy none of us would have been any good at anything. You would have been a mess because it was your brother. Kim would have been distraught and wouldn't have noticed anything at all in her grief. Katherine would have been upset because she was a friend. Rocky would have led a mission to get him back because he'd want to make you happy and getting Tommy back would have done that. Taking Rocky was probably the best scenario. It distracted Tommy, Jason and you and had Kim worried about you. You getting mad and blaming Jason and Tommy for what happened was an added bonus because you wouldn't have been checking on things like you might have otherwise. Rocky's kidnapping was a ploy. It was to draw us away from Kimberly and allow them to come in and take her," Billy said.  
>Meredith and Tommy sat on the couch in shock at what happened. The other former rangers had found seats in Tommy's living room and were in the same state. The entire mission that had caused the reds to risk their lives had been a set up. Someone was after Kimberly and had gone to elaborate lengths to make it happen.<p>

"What is it," Jason asked Billy.

"You guys really aren't going to like this," Billy said, eying everyone of them.  
>"What about this are we supposed to like? Nothing has been pleasant, so you should just spill it," Tommy said.<br>"Well, Andros informed me that, thanks to the Dark Spector, Rita and Zedd had a child," Billy said.  
>***Insert the suspenseful music here! What's this child have to do with the rangers? Who is this spawn of Rita and Zedd?*** -mereditholiver<p> 


	50. Blast From the Past?

DISCLAIMER: Please see previous chapters. Meredith is all mine. Mine I tell you!

BLAST FROM THE PAST?  
>"What the hell," Jason shouted, his exclamation drowning out the others shock.<p>

"Yeah. Rita and Zedd had a spawn of evil," Billy said.  
>"Another one? Besides Thrax? This is getting better and better. What else," Adam asked.<br>"That's who is after Kim," Billy said.  
>"I'm sensing there's more to this. Am I right," Meredith asked.<br>"Apparently, it was a daughter and she's here. Somewhere," Billy said.  
>"So, she's someone Tommy and Kim had contact with," Zack asked.<br>"At least Tommy had contact with them. Kim was targeted to get her away from Tommy and keep him away from her," Billy said.  
>"We see how well that worked," Meredith said.<p>

"Who is it," Tommy asked.  
>"Don't know. Andros said that's all he's able to figure out. Rita and Zedd had a daughter that's here on Earth and has had contact with you at some point. I don't know more than that," Billy said.<p>

"So Rita and Zedd had another child, a daughter, that wants Tommy for herself and was stalking Kim and threatening her to keep her from Tommy," Jason said.  
>Billy nodded his head.<br>"And when that didn't work she orchestrated some elaborate plan to get Tommy away from Kim so she could kidnap her and have Tommy for herself? If she knows Tommy at all she'll know Tommy's going to look for her," Meredith said.  
>"Maybe she wants to make Tommy suffer," Adam said.<p>

"Or maybe she's counting on him coming to find Kim," Jason said.  
>"Well, don't you think we need to figure out who this person is and get Kimberly back? I'm marrying her in a few weeks and I would like to have her at the alter," Tommy said.<br>He turned his back to everyone and walked around his 'lair.' Meredith knew her brother was having a difficult time processing this new piece of information about Kimberly and the kidnapping. She also knew he was feeling responsible for Rocky's kidnapping because he was inadvertently the reason Rocky had been kidnapped.

"Why don't you guys head back home? Zack, I'm sure Aisha is wondering what happened to you. Tell her we'll get together soon. My residency will be finished soon and then we'll all be settled down," Meredith said.  
>"You sure, Meredith? I can stick around if you think you'll need me," Zack said.<br>Meredith was touched by Zack's caring. It had been a long time since she'd visited with her friend, especially since she started medical school.  
>"I can handle this. Tell Aisha to call or email me and we'll make plans. I'd love to see my god-daughter," she said.<br>Zack eyed her cautiously, but gave Meredith a hug and shook hands with the other men. He patted Tommy on the shoulder and left the 'lair.' He knew Tommy needed to brood and didn't want to be around him when he finally blew his top. Meredith couldn't blame him. She wasn't looking forward to the experience herself.

"Adam you should get back home. I know you have call tomorrow for 24 hours. You should get some rest. I'll have Rocky call you," Meredith said.  
>Adam nodded, knowing not to argue with the Oliver twin. He hugged her bye and told Jason to call him if Tommy needed help. He volunteered Tanya to watch Siobhan if it became necessary. Jason promised to call and Adam left, knowing Tommy's demeanor almost as well as Meredith.<p>

Billy went to the equipment Tommy had set up in his 'lair.' He had yet to explain to his sister why he felt the need to develop something like this and Meredith was almost scared to imagine the possibilities.

Meredith turned to Jason. "What are we going to do," she asked.  
>Jason shrugged his shoulders. For the first time, he didn't have any idea how to proceed. The problem before them required not muscle, but serious thinking. Jason was a smart guy, but found problems that required muscle were much easier for him to solve. He could go on autopilot and take care of the problem with his karate skills and muscles.<p>

"Wait a minute. Rita and Zedd did have a kid and it was Thrax, but Adam defeated him. Now, Thrax was ugly. I would think we might have noticed something that looked like Zedd or Rita hanging around," Meredith said.  
>"She has to look normal. Do you know any of the women Tommy had contact with during his year he was separated from Kimberly," Jason asked Meredith.<p>

Meredith shook her head.

"During that time I was so focused on my studies and Rocky and being incredibly pissed at Tommy for breaking up with Kim that I didn't spend time with Tommy and his friends. I know there were one or two girls that Tommy said were friends, but he never thought of them as anything other than that. I don't know who it could be," Meredith said, sitting on the desk chair.

She felt like she didn't know her brother as well as she had once thought. She felt like she had failed him by neglecting to keep in better touch with him during that year.

"You're not a bad sister," Jason said, ripping Meredith from her thoughts.

"What are you talking about," she asked.  
>"You're thinking you should have paid more attention to Tommy's life when he and Kim were apart. You were trying to build a marriage and have a career. You were doing what you should have been doing so don't think any of this is your fault," Jason said.<br>"You shouldn't be able to still do that," she said, smiling at her friend.  
>"Like you've always said, 'old habits die hard.' You're not that tough to read, Meri. Why don't you head back home to Rocky. I know you've missed him and I'll stay here with Tommy and see if I can get something out of him," Jason said.<br>"You'll call me," Meredith asked, knowing the answer to that statement.  
>Jason gave her a sideways glance. It was a glance she knew well. It was one that told her 'Duh.' She smiled at him and headed to her brother.<br>Tommy was sitting in the corner of his 'lair' trying to process what had happened.

"I'm heading home to check on Rocky. We will find Kim. Don't you worry about that. You two have fought to hard to be together to let fate end it right now. If Zordon's still out there, he's protecting her. You have to know that. Love you bro," Meredith said.  
>Tommy looked up at his sister. "Do you think so," he asked in a near whisper.<br>"I know it," she whispered back. She placed a kiss on his head and hugged him. His arms wrapped around her tightly as if he was afraid to lose her, again.

"I'll see you later. Come by the house if you need to. We can watch Siobhan," she said, before ducking out the secret passage to the woods.

Jason looked back at his friend.  
>"This is some crazy stuff, Tommy. We have got to figure out why someone is coming after you after all this time," he said.<p>

Tommy looked at his friend. "I don't know. This doesn't make any sense. I don't have any powers. Kimberly doesn't have any powers. The powers from the red mission were temporary. There isn't anything remotely power ranger related in our lives. So why would Zedd and Rita's daughter come after me," Tommy asked.  
>"Billy do you have any ideas," Jason asked.<br>"I'm scanning for Kimberly's bio-signature, but that's going to take some time. We should probably head back upstairs. The computers will let me know when they find a match," Billy said.  
>Jason led the way to the stairs that led to Tommy's kitchen. He pushed the button to allow the floor in the kitchen to open. When the three were upstairs, the hidden door shut itself and couldn't be detected even if you were looking for it.<p>

Tommy looked in on his daughter, still sleeping in her crib, oblivious to her missing mother. He placed a kiss on the top of her head and went back downstairs to Billy and Jason.

"Jase, you should head home to Katherine. I'll stay with Tommy. We can't do anything unless we know where to start looking. The search is going to take some time because she could be anywhere," Billy said.

"You sure," Jason asked. Billy nodded his head.

"I'll check on you later. I'll let you know if the police find anything," Jason said, glancing at his best friend and heading out the front door.  
>Billy looked at Tommy. He'd seen Tommy this way whenever Kimberly had been kidnapped by Zedd or when she had been injured during her days as a gymnast. He hadn't been around when Tommy and Kimberly had broken up, but he'd heard about it from Meredith. He hoped he could be successful for a third time in finding a friend. He'd located Tommy, partially because of Meredith's dogged determination to have her brother back. Tommy had insisted Billy could find Rocky and save himself and Meredith from some heartache. He only hoped he could find Kimberly and save everyone from the pain of her being gone for good. Meredith had given Billy the names of two women Tommy had been friends with during the year he and Kimberly were apart.<p>

Tommy went into autopilot when he heard Siobhan cry. Tommy told Billy he could handle his daughter and to find Kimberly. Billy booted up the laptop he'd brought and started searching using his link up to his lab back at the hanger. He could have used the University's equipment, but he didn't want Kimberly's past as a power ranger to become public knowledge. If they knew Kimberly was a power ranger, the identities of the other rangers, past and present, wouldn't be too difficult to figure out.

Meredith arrived back at her apartment and quietly let herself inside. She put her purse on the bench by the front door and headed upstairs. She hoped Rocky was still sleeping because she was exhausted.

Rocky was sleeping soundly in his spot on the bed, so Meredith changed into her yoga pants and one of Rocky's t-shirts and crawled into bed with her husband.  
>He immediately knew she was there and wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her hair. Meredith snuggled deeper into his embrace and fell asleep.<p>

Two hours later, Rocky stirred next to Meredith.

He took a deep breath and was immediately met with the scent of his wife's shampoo, sweet pea and violets. He opened his eyes and found Meredith sleeping soundly next to him. He blinked, just to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

Meredith sensed his movement and rolled over to face him.  
>"Hey," she said, before he captured her mouth in a kiss that left Meredith breathless and her entire body aching for Rocky.<p>

"I had to make sure I wasn't dreaming. I wanted to make sure you were really you," he said, kissing her again.  
>Without giving Meredith a chance to say anything in response, she gave into the aching she had for her husband and they spent a few hours in their bed, making up for the time they had lost together.<p>

After their marathon session, Meredith and Rocky lay in each others arms, blissful from their activities.

"So anything new," Rocky asked, kissing his wife's bare shoulder.

"Well, I ran over to Tommy's while you were sleeping. I wanted to apologize and then I found out that someone has kidnapped Kimberly," she said.  
>Rocky was immediately alarmed. "Do you know what happened," he asked.<br>"Just that who ever was stalking her, took the opportunity to grab her while they were rescuing you," she said.  
>"I feel so bad," Rocky said, his head hitting the pillow.<br>"Don't be. It was a setup," Meredith said.

"What are you talking about, babe," he asked.  
>"They set up the whole red ranger mission, kidnapped you so the others would go searching for you. None of us thought Kim's stalker and the moon mission were related. Someone did this elaborate ploy to get Kimberly and the only thing we know is that it is the daughter of Rita and Zedd," Meredith explained.<p>

"Hold the phone. Rita and Zedd had a daughter, too? I thought Thrax was their only child. Adam defeated him," Rocky said.  
>"Yeah, but remember, we know next to nothing about Rita and Zedd. And I really don't think any of us wanted to think about them procreating," Meredith said, shuddering.<br>"It is pretty scary. So does anyone have any idea about Kimberly," Rocky asked.  
>"Billy's using the 'lair' to search. Jason will call if they find something. Tommy's trying to hold it together for Siobhan," Meredith said.<br>"That's a lot to process. Rita and Zedd having one child was pretty nuts, but them having another one is not something I want to think about. However, it happened," he said.  
>"Speaking of having kids, Jason said he and Kat are expecting again," Meredith said.<br>"Wow. That's fast. Those two are going to have their hands full," Rocky said.  
>"Tommy also told me that Kimberly was pregnant again," Meredith said.<br>"Holy smokes. That's incredible. I'm happy for them. All of them," he said, but Meredith caught the bitterness in his voice he was trying to hide. They had been trying to have children, but Meredith had yet to get pregnant. Rocky was so worried, he'd made a secret appointment with a fertility doctor just to test and see if there was something wrong with him.

"Yeah. It is pretty exciting. That means our child will have a cousin and close friend the same age," Meredith said, gauging her husband's reaction.  
>"Yeah, having kids the same age makes instant playmates," Rocky said.<br>"Rocky," Meredith said.  
>She cocked her eyebrow and looked at her husband. Rocky smiled at his wife. "What," he said.<br>Meredith's normally big expressive eyes, became bigger as she tried to get Rocky to go along with her line of thought.

"Meri...Oh my GOD! You're pregnant," he said.

Meredith laughed and nodded her head.  
>Rocky wrapped his wife in his arms and kissed her. He thought of nothing else but the fact that, finally, he and Meredith were going to have the one thing they'd been dreaming about since the day they got married.<p>

Meredith put her head on her husband's chest and closed her eyes. She felt guilty for enjoying a happy moment with her husband while her brother was suffering and Kimberly was who knows where. Meredith shook the thoughts off because she hadn't had a happy moment in the last two weeks and she was going to savor this one. Given the current state, she didn't know when they'd get another happy one.

***Meredith and Rocky are having a baby. Kimberly is missing. Who is Zedd and Rita's daughter? Is it someone from Tommy's past?*** -mereditholiver


	51. Who Are You?

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters.

WHO ARE YOU?

Kimberly felt horrible. She had a massive headache and every muscle in her body ached. She felt like she'd been ten rounds with every monster Rita and Zedd ever created.

She opened her eyes and immediately regretted that decision.

She felt the floor under her. She knew she wasn't at home and the events of how she arrived here hit her like a cement truck.

"Siobhan," she screamed, horrified that she had left her daughter alone.

She prayed Tommy had returned from the mission before any harm had come to her daughter.  
>The hot tears slipped down her cheeks as she thought her daughter and Tommy. She didn't understand what had happened to her.<p>

She replayed the events over in her mind.  
>She had been preparing to make a pot of soup for dinner because she knew Tommy liked chicken soup. She was cutting up the celery when someone had knocked on the back door.<p>

Kimberly had looked out the window and recognized the woman at the door. Kimberly tried to remember who it was that had been at the door. The only sense she got was that she recognized the woman and hadn't worried.  
>"Maybe I should have," Kimberly thought out loud.<p>

"Oh, Tommy, I hope you're with our daughter. I don't want anything to happen to her," she said to no one.  
>"Isn't that cute. You're praying for your daughter and Tommy. That's so sweet. Too bad it can't help you," her mysterious captor said.<p>

"Please, tell me Siobhan is OK," Kimberly begged. She hated the desperation in her voice, but she wanted to know her baby girl was safe.

"You're precious daughter is fine. If only I'd gotten closer to Tommy sooner, I could have prevented that little mistake from being born," the captor said.  
>"Siobhan is not a mistake," Kimberly said.<p>

"I beg to differ. Any child that Tommy has with you is a mistake. It's a threat to the evil my parents created. Unfortunately, you little power brats turned my parents into little goody two-shoes," the captor said.

"You're parents are Rita and Zedd," Kimberly asked, horrified. She knew Rita and Zedd had a son, Thrax who was defeated by Adam. News of a daughter was shocking to her.

"So what's your fascination with me and Tommy, anyway," Kimberly asked.  
>"Daddy dearest seemed to have some insane crush on you and Mommy wanted to punish Tommy for making a fool of her and leaving for the side of good," the captor said, chuckling.<p>

"You're parents became good. Why are you so filled with distaste for me and Tommy and our family," Kimberly asked.  
>"Because I was going to be the queen. I was going to be the one with the power after Thrax died. I had no problems with Adam killing my dear brother. He needed to be gotten rid of and, if Adam hadn't done it, I would have. I spent years trying to convince you and Tommy to stay apart. I managed to trick the Time Force Rangers. They saw a future that had you dying because you were with Tommy. They and that sap, Andros, thought you would be a target because of Tommy's power as a ranger. That wasn't true. I was going to kill you, but I wanted to make sure the two of you never had a child. That child would be the creation of two of the most powerful rangers ever. Tommy's former evil energy was also converted to pure energy during the conversion that changed my dear parents. I'm sure he didn't understand what, exactly, happened to him at that time. I wasn't quick enough to keep you from getting pregnant. My threat was delivered when Andros told Tommy you'd be killed within a few years of getting married. You couldn't have a child if you weren't together," the captor said.<p>

Kimberly shuddered. The anger and hatred pouring off her was scaring Kimberly.

"Why are you so afraid of Tommy and I having children," Kimberly asked.  
>"Because I want him," the captor said, as if it was the most logical answer.<p>

"Tommy would never love you," Kimberly said.  
>"Not if he knew who I really was, you're probably right. I planned to stay his friend and help support him through this crisis. Then we'd see what happens. If he didn't find out until after we were married and joined, then he would have come back to the dark side. It was a good plan. Until you had that brat," the captor said.<br>Kimberly was scared for herself and her daughter. This woman was determined to get Tommy and keep them apart.

"I don't understand. You've had a presence in Tommy's life? Who the hell are you," Kimberly demanded.  
>"Kimmy, stop being demanding. I'm sure if you think about it, you'd realize who I am," the captor said.<br>Kimberly stared into the darkness. The voice was sounding familiar to her, but she couldn't place it.  
>"Can't figure it out? Well, you will soon. I'll just leave you here until I figure out exactly how to inflict the most amount of pain on you and make sure that Tommy has me to lean on when this is over," the captor said.<br>Kimberly heard the door closing behind her and once again, the quiet was consuming. She KNEW who it was, but she couldn't pull it to the front of her addled brain.

She sat on the floor and cried, if for no other reason than she didn't have a way out. She closed her eyes and willed Tommy to find her.

Kimberly's captor watched her. She smiled an evil grin and proceeded to teleport out of the moon palace. She had made it easy to discover Rocky so they would leave Earth and Kimberly unguarded. She regretted not having grabbed Siobhan, but she couldn't harm the child. Her mother had made her promise not to harm any innocent children in her quest. Her mother hadn't understood her all consuming desire to destroy Kimberly and have Tommy for herself. However, as a mother, she hadn't stood in her daughter's way. For this, she was glad because, as much as her parent's conversion to goodness had nauseated her, she didn't want to upset her parents. So the child remained tucked in her crib, much to the captor's dismay.

She arrived at her apartment, secure in the knowledge that Kimberly's location would be kept a secret until she was ready for it to be revealed.

"Nighty, night, Kimmy. Tommy's going to get a surprise tomorrow."

***What will that surprise be? Will Kimberly figure out who her captor is? Will anyone?*** -mereditholiver


	52. What's Missing?

DISCLAIMER: Please see previous chapters as nothing has changed.

WHAT'S MISSING

Billy continued to look at the data. He was almost certain Kimberly was being held in the moon palace but could not penetrate the shield. He was beginning to believe whomever had Kimberly had wanted Rocky found easily so Kimberly would be unprotected during the rescue mission.

He continued looking over his equipment and wondered what would happen if he went to the group and wasn't successful. He couldn't stand the thought of seeing Tommy's heart break in front of him and he knew he wouldn't be able to handle the anger.

Jason was angry. He didn't have a clue what had happened to Kimberly; who had taken her. He'd been removed from the investigation, but he knew the police department didn't think she'd been kidnapped. Anything else would have them revealing her identity as a former power ranger and that was something the friends knew they couldn't do. All Jason could do was hope Billy found something to lead them to Kim and the police believed she just went off by herself for a while to get away. That's what Tommy was trying to convince them of now, since the former rangers knew there was an evil energy involved.

The biggest worry on his mind was the whole Rita and Zedd daughter mess.

They all knew, thanks to the Time Force Rangers who visited them in the past, that Adam would destroy Thrax while helping Operation Overdrive. The Time Force team didn't reveal the what happened and when it would happen, just that Adam would play a major part in the demise of Thrax.

Jason had asked Andros if the Time Force team knew anything about the future meeting of Adam and Thrax. Jason was told that they knew of the daughter, but the identity was unknown to them. Jason wondered if that was the motivation behind Kimberly's kidnapping.

Jason went upstairs to find his wife sleeping peacefully in their bed, unaware of the turmoil going through Jason's head. He peeked into Chloe's room before crawling into bed with his wife, hoping this day would be a dream and Kimberly and Tommy would get to live happily ever after.

Meredith woke up and slipped downstairs. She needed to think about this whole situatioin. She was tired and emotionally drained from the last few days. Of course, she knew she couldn't relax until she was sure Kimberly was safe. She pulled out her cell phone and called downstairs to Eric.

"Meri, everything OK," Eric asked.

"Yeah, Rocky came home about 12 hours ago and he's been sleeping since he came home," Meredith said.

"That's great. Is he OK," Eric asked.

"Just exhausted. I'm sure he'll be starving when he wakes up," she said.

"Rocky and food. His feasts are lengendary, Meri. So what's up," he asked.

"I need to know if you can keep the dojo here under control for a bit longer. I don't want Rocky going back to work for about a week, so will you keep things under control. You've been doing great," Meredith said.

"Sure, what ever you need. Rocky's been giving me more responsibility with this location when he started opening those other schools, so I think I can handle it. Just let me know what you want me to do," he said.

"Thanks, Eric. You've been a great friend to me during all of this," Meredith said.

"Hey, rangers stick together. You guys gave me a place to live AND a job when I was lost when I wasn't a ranger any longer. I'll do anything I can to help you both, you know that, Meri," Eric said. And he meant it. Eric thought of the couple as siblings. He had a great relationship with both of them. He sparred with Rocky and helped with the dojo. He helped Meredith when she taught her self-defense classes. Meredith thought of Eric as her brother and treated him like she did Tommy.

Meredith put the cell on the counter and made her way up the stairs to her bedroom, eager to set eyes on her husband.

She entered the bedroom and was surprised to find he wasn't in their bed.

"Rocky," she called, heading into the bathroom. She heard the shower running. "Rocky, I'm back. Sorry I wasn't here when you woke up," she said, entering the bathroom. She approached the shower and was shocked to find her husband sitting on the floor of the shower, staring off into space.

Meredith crouched down next to him, ignoring the spray from the shower and the fact that it was getting colder by the minute.

"Honey, are you OK," she whispered.

Rocky stared at the wall and slowly turned his head to face her. He blinked several times as if to make sure she was really there.

"Babe," he whispered.

"I'm right here," she said.

Rocky reached out and grabbed onto her. Meredith sat on the floor next to her husband, holding him. "What's wrong," she asked. Pulling from her medical background, he was acting like a man suffering from PTSD.

Meredith held her husband until he realized she was there. "Meredith? What happened," he said, shaking from the cold water that was raining down on them. Meredith reached up and turned off the water. Rocky's tight grip on her had prevented her from doing it before now. She grabbed the towel off the door and wrapped it around him.

"You were somewhere else. Do you remember," she asked her husband, gently probing him for information.

"I was in the shower and the hardness and coldness of the floor and the walls reminded me of that castle dungeon. I remembered a voice that was right at the edge of my memory. I had heard it before, but not enough to know what I was hearing right away. For a bit I guess I was back there," he said. He got off the floor and helped his wife up. He grabbed his robe off the back of the bathroom door and exited the room. He sat on the edge of the bed, watching Meredith.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here when you got up. It's only natural that you'd feel a bit weird after your experience. I'm so sorry I wasn't here," she said. She shivered slightly, her clothes dripping on the plush bathroom rug.

"Oh, God, babe, you're freezing," Rocky said, jumping up off the bed and grabbing towels to help his wife.

He helped Meredith undress and helped her into her robe.

"Are you OK? Nothing happened with the baby, right," Rocky said, changing the focus off him.

"I'm just cold and scared. Rocky, I found you on the floor of the shower, staring off into space. Are you sure nothing happened to you in that dungeon other than not being able to lie down," she prodded.

"Positive. What I remember was just missing you like crazy and feeling like I was going to miss a lot and worrying about how you were going to feel. I was in pain, but it was emotional," he said.

"OK. Do you want to order out for dinner? I don't feel like cooking," she said, as she tied the belt around her waist.

"Fine, babe," Rocky said. He took some clothes out of his drawer and got Meredith's favorite fleece pants and t shirt out of her dresser.

Rocky laughed at the pants she wore. As a joke one year, Tommy had gotten Meredith purple ranger pajama pants. Meredith loved them and, considering she always bought gag gifts like that for her friends, it was appropriate. She also liked to wear two of Rocky's shirts that said 'The Red Ranger does it best' and 'My heart belongs to the Red Ranger.' Rocky always got a kick out of seeing her wearing those shirts because of how true they were and no one but their inner circle knew the truth.

Meredith smiled at his choices and changed her clothes. Before pulling the shirt over her head, Rocky laid a protective hand on her belly. He smiled up at his wife and said, "Our kid's in there. Isn't that awesome." Meredith smiled back at him and kissed him.

"Why don't you order the food. I need to make a phone call. I want to check on Tommy since Kimberly's missing," she said.

"What? What happened," Rocky asked, immediately concerned for both his brother-in-law and his 'little sister.'

"Order dinner and I'll tell you while we're waiting. I want to make sure everything is OK," she said. She followed Rocky out of the bathroom and down the stairs. She picked up her cell phone from the counter and went into the living room. Rocky picked up the kitchen phone and placed a call to their favorite Chinese place.

When Meredith was sure Rocky was occupied, she called Adam.

"Mer, anything on Kim," Tanya asked when she answered the phone.

"No. I was calling to speak to Adam about Rocky," she said.

"Sure. He's right here," Tanya said. Meredith heard the phone being given to Adam.

"What's up, Meri? Something wrong," he asked.

"I have a feeling Rocky's got some PTSD. I found him in the corner of the shower staring off in the space as he sat on the floor. It took him a few minutes to realize I was there and I got drenched myself because he grabbed on and wouldn't let go. Think you could make an excuse to hang out with him. See if you notice anything," she asked.

"Sure. I'll call him in a little while and see what I can set up," Adam said.

"Thanks. I'm going to call Tommy and see if anything has developed on the Kimberly front since we left," Meredith said ending the call and calling her brother.

"Meri, have you heard from Kim again," he asked without saying hello.

"No, I was calling to find out if anything new has developed," she said.

"Nothing. Billy's supposed to come by in the morning and let us know what he's found. In the meantime, I'm thinking of taking Siobhan to mom and dad's. If I have to go off and save Kimberly, I don't want to worry about Siobhan getting hurt," Tommy said.

"Sounds like a plan, but I don't think Kim's kidnapper is interested in hurting Siobhan. They had the perfect opportunity to do it, but they didn't. They took Kim and left the baby. Doesn't sound like they were concerned with her," Meredith said.

"That's a pleasant thought. Leaving a baby alone because you're consumed with something for the baby's mother. Thanks for that thought, Meri," Tommy said.

"Sorry. Let me know if you find out anything and I'll be over in the morning," she said.

"You should rest. After all, you're pregnant, too," Tommy reminded his sister.

"I know. I'm being careful, I just want to help you," she said.

"That's your problem. You have to fix everything, but I love you for that," he said.

"I like control. It's an OCD thing, remember," she said.

"I just feel so lost without her, Mer. I don't know what to do. I can imagine this is how you felt when Rocky was missing," Tommy said.

"I felt like I couldn't breathe. That every breath I managed to take forced me farther and farther away from him. I felt empty. Nothing had any substance. Love didn't exist for me anymore. When Rocky came home, I felt complete," she said.

"That's it. I don't know what to do," Tommy said, his voice breaking.

"You'll survive. We'll find Kim and you'll get married and I'll wear some stupid pink dress at the wedding," she said.

"You love pink," he said.

"On anyone but me," she said.

The siblings said good-bye. Meredith noticed Rocky standing in the archway between the kitchen and dining room.

"Everything OK with Tommy," he asked, walking toward her.

"For now. He knows she's still alive, but he feels lost without her. Kind of like me when you were gone," she said, wrapping her arms around his neck.

They shared a hug and Meredith closed her eyes. She sent a silent prayer to the heavens that they would find Kimberly and everything could go back to normal. Or at least, normal for them. She just hoped Rocky's incident was an isolated one because she didn't know if she could handle losing him a second time. The only difference was he'd be there in body, but not in mind.

Somewhere in the sky, Zordon looked down on his rangers and realized they were struggling. He thought of a way he could help them in his present form, but came up with nothing. He decided to do something that was sure to shock his fellow inter-dimensional beings. He was going to have to figure out how to get to Earth and once again guide his 'children.'

***Drama, drama. Don't you just love it? What's Karma going to throw at them next?***


	53. Surprise!

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters.

SURPRISE!

Regina looked at the building. She knew this was his business, but she really hadn't spoken to him in a while. And not since this happened. She wasn't sure he would even welcome her into his house, but she didn't have any where to turn.

Regina entered the building and paused at the desk.

She was greeted by Eric.

Eric was face-to-face with a beautiful young woman, who looked oddly familiar to him. Clearing his throat he asked if he could help her.  
>"Miss, may I help you," he asked. When she turned around, Eric noticed the beautiful woman was pregnant.<br>"I hope so. I'm looking for Rocky DeSantos. I thought this was his business," she said.

Eric covered his shock at the young woman asking for Rocky by looking down at a piece of paper. "He does own this place, but he's not in today," Eric said, gathering his composure.  
>"Oh, dear. It's very important that I speak to him. Do you think you can find out where he is for me," she asked. Regina was more than tired and wanted nothing than to get off her feet. Her unborn child was protesting the amount of activity she had been doing today. She'd walked here from the bus stop, not wanting to waste the money on a taxi, just in case she needed a hotel room.<p>

Eric wasn't sure what to think. Nothing much bothered the former quantum ranger, but this was a bit of a shock.  
>"Let me see if I can help you...," he said.<br>"Regina," she replied.

He turned around and picked up his cell phone. He stepped around the corner and called his boss upstairs.  
>"Eric, things OK in the dojo," Rocky asked when he answered the phone.<br>"Things are fine, but there's a young lady down here asking to see you. Says her name is Regina," Eric said.

Rocky gave an audible gasp. He couldn't believe she had shown up.

"Tell her to wait for me in the lobby. I'll come down and get her. Can I talk to her in your apartment," Rocky asked, getting ready to head downstairs.  
>"What ever you need, boss. Will you tell me what's going on," he asked.<p>

"Later. Take her to your apartment and I'll be there in a minute," Rocky said, ending the call.

Eric held the phone in his hand, staring at it like he could get the answer to what was going on from it.

"Rocky said he'd meet you upstairs. I'll show you the way," Eric said. He took her through the office to the back hallway. He opted to take the service elevator instead of the stairs.

He unlocked the door to his apartment and let her inside.

"Make yourself comfortable. Rocky should be along any minute," Eric said.  
>Regina nodded and sat on the couch. Eric cast one last glance back at her and exited the apartment.<p>

"Hey, Babe," Rocky called to Meredith. She came out of the kitchen and stood in the doorway to their office.  
>"Yeah," she said.<br>"I have to run downstairs for a bit. I'll be back soon," he said, slipping on his shoes.  
>"Everything OK," Meredith asked, following him to the door.<br>"Yeah. Just something I have to take care of," he said. They shared a kiss and Rocky went out the door. Meredith shut the door behind him and leaned against it. For the first time in their marriage, she was certain Rocky was keeping something from her. She resolved to find out what it was. Meredith knew she could handle anything he did, but keeping a secret was not allowed in their relationship.

Eric saw Rocky coming down the stairs.  
>"She's in there," Eric said.<br>"Thanks. I'll talk to you later," Rocky said.

Rocky entered Eric's apartment and was overcome with memories of his life with Meredith in this little apartment.  
>He caught sight of Regina sitting on Eric's couch, looking uneasy.<p>

He entered the room and cleared his throat. "Gina," he said.  
>"Rocky," she said, getting off the couch and coming toward him. When she stood up, Rocky noticed she was pregnant.<br>Shocked, Rocky pointed at her stomach, stopping her in mid-stride.  
>"What the hell," he said, shocked and angered by her appearance.<p>

"Surprise," she said, shrugging her shoulders and smiling.

Rocky sat on the chair that was closest to him. He was shocked to discover Regina had shown up at his business, but that she was also pregnant. There was no way he could keep her a secret now, especially after Eric had seen her in this state. He leaned his head back against the wall, unsure of what he was going to do, but knew his wife might hate him before he figured this out.

Meredith picked up her phone and called the dojo.  
>"Like a Rock Dojo and Dance. This is Eric," Eric said.<br>"Hey, Eric. It's Meri. Is Rocky down there with you," she asked.  
>"Um...no, he's not," Eric said, unsure of what he was supposed to tell his friend.<p>

"That's funny. He said he had to go downstairs and do some thing. He didn't come down there," she asked again.  
>"No. He isn't here," Eric said. "Maybe you misunderstood."<p>

"Maybe. If you see him, tell him I'm looking for him," she said and hung up.

Meredith clutched her phone to her chest and fell back on the sofa. Meredith felt her foundation crack. Her beloved husband. The one man she loved more than her brother, HAD lied. He wasn't downstairs. Eric hadn't seen him. Meredith didn't have any idea what had happened to her husband. She closed her eyes as the tears welled up in them. 'What am I going to do,' she thought to herself.

***Hehe! Who is Regina? Why is she pregnant? Why did Rocky lie to Meredith? …...Nope, but good guess.*** -mereditholiver


	54. Secrets

DISCLAIMER: See previous.

SECRETS

Billy poured over the data. He couldn't believe he'd actually found Kimberly. Whoever had kidnapped her had done a good job of hiding their tracks, but Billy had uncovered their energy pattern.

The jumble of readings were all over the map, leaving Billy to believe that Kim's kidnapper was keeping up a normal life so as not to attract attention.

A strong concentration of readings was on the moon. Right where he'd assumed they should have been, giving how they had found Rocky.

He picked up the phone and called Jason.  
>"Tell me you found her, Billy," Jason said.<br>"She's on the moon in the same palace as Rocky, just on a different floor. I can't believe I didn't see this before," Billy said.  
>"How soon can we get there," Jason asked.<p>

"I'll see if Andros can bring the ship back from KO-35. He shouldn't have a problem bringing it back. Who are you taking with you," Billy asked.  
>"I'll call Adam and see if he can come. I'll also ask Zack. I might give Eric a call since I know he's close," Jason said.<br>"I'll go with you," Billy said.  
>"Well, I figured that. That was going without saying that you were coming," Jason said.<br>"You going to tell Tommy," Billy asked.  
>"Nope. Same reason he didn't tell Meri about us going back to get Rocky. Won't know if it's going to happen until we actually get there," Jason said.<br>"I'll call Andros and give you a time frame," Billy said.

"Sounds perfect," Jason said.

Jason sat the cell phone on the counter and let out a relieved breath. He couldn't believe that they had found her so fast. He just hoped he could get to her in time before something happened to her.

His cell rang, pulling him out of his thoughts. "Yeah, Billy," he said.  
>"We're meeting him in an hour at the hanger. He should get there in a few minutes. He hadn't left the solar system just yet, so we were lucky to get him back so fast," Billy said.<br>"OK. I'll meet you at the hanger. I'll call the others," Jason said, hanging up the phone without a good-bye to Billy.  
>He called Adam and told him what was happening. Adam agreed to be there. Zack also agreed to come without too much trouble.<br>Jason called Eric last. "Jase! What's up, man? You got another mission for the reds," Eric said, jokingly.

"Actually, I'm getting some of the former rangers together to rescue Kimberly. She's trapped on the moon," Jason said.  
>"Sure I'll help. Where and when," he asked.<br>"An hour at the hanger," Jason said.  
>Eric hung up the phone and called Rocky.<br>He was surprised when the phone went to voice mail, but again he wasn't surprised. If Rocky was still talking to Regina, who knows when he'd be back. He left a quick message that he was going to help Jason with a project and hung up.

"Callie," he called.  
>A young girl came into the office. "Yeah, Mr. Meyers," she asked.<br>"I have an emergency I need to fix. If Mr. DeSantos or Dr. DeSantos calls, let them know I had an emergency and leave a message. If they want to know what I'm doing just tell them I'm helping Jason," he said, getting his keys out of the drawers and picking up his motorcycle helmet off the desk.  
>"Sure thing. Hope it works out for you, sir," she said.<br>"So do I, Callie. So do I," he said, heading out the door into the warm California sunshine.

Zordon observed the scene of his 'children' once again. He hoped he could figure out a way to help them in this ethereal form. He had to get himself back into a mortal form. He had to get to Earth and help his rangers before something happened. He was seeing the strain on Meredith, the one ranger who tried to fix everything and hold everyone together. She was always the calm one and dealt with Tommy better than any of the others. He was afraid Meredith would suffer a tremendous set back if something happened. Zordon knew Meredith had to deliver the baby she was carrying. Despite what the dark forces thought, Meredith and Rocky's child would hold enormous power. He saw how Tommy was coping, or more like NOT coping, with Kimberly's kidnapping. He knew this former ranger, the one who felt guilty because of his own evil past, might do the riskiest things to save those he loved without regard to himself. He felt the anger within Jason at Kimberly's loss. Jason was his first red, the original leader, and Zordon knew if Jason fail, he would feel responsible and cut those he needed the most out of his life in some misguided fear of hurting them. He felt the uncertainty that was Rocky after his ordeal. His second red ranger worried him. Rocky's devotion to Meredith was well known throughout the ranger community, much like Tommy and Kimberly. Zordon was worried Rocky's willingness to protect Meredith might allow harm to come to Rocky. He knew how Adam felt, trying to help save the world and wondering if it was worth it. Adam was the quiet one and the one that internalized everything that happened. Zordon knew he felt the pain of his friend's kidnapping and the helplessness surrounding Kimberly's situation. He felt the sorrow Tanya felt at not being able to help Adam in any way. Katherine's pain at her friend and former rival shocked Zordon the most. Katherine had spent a few weeks in high school trying to get rid of Kimberly and then trying to get Tommy. He hadn't understood her desire to remember what she had done and felt because it was crippling her. He knew he had to do something and called on his friend, Dimitria. He hoped she had a way to help him help his rangers.

"What are you thinking, coming here," Rocky said, his tone harsh.

Regina sat back on the sofa, wishing she could fall into the cushions. "I didn't know what else to do," she said.  
>"Do you have any idea what your appearance here is going to do? What effect your going to have on my wife," he said. Rocky started pacing around the room, not sure what to do.<p>

Rocky eyed Regina, trying to figure out how things could be fixed, but, with Regina's pregnancy, he didn't see how he could fix things.

"I didn't know what to do when I got pregnant. I thought you'd help me. I thought you might care about this child," she said, giving him a glare.

"There's a reason we don't have contact. You poison everything you touch. You ruin others lives without one iota of regard for what you are doing. Did you even stop to think of what your appearance here was going to do? What Eric is going to think," Rocky said.

Regina stared back at Rocky. "I guess you didn't. I knew I should have left you alone," he replied.  
>"Well, I'm here now and what's done is done. I need help. I don't have anywhere to go and this baby is going to be born any day now whether you like it or not," she said.<br>Rocky knew he had to help her, despite everything in his head telling him to kick her to the curb, the site of her swollen abdomen, stopped those thoughts.

"I'll get you a motel room until you have that child. Then you're leaving. I don't care where you go, but you're leaving," he said to her, running scenarios through his head to figure out what he was going to do.

"Come on back downstairs to the garage. I'll take you to a motel outside of town. You'll stay there until you go in to labor. Don't call me, don't have any contact with me," Rocky said, his anger increasing by the minute.

Regina got off the couch and reached for her small bag. Rocky beat her to it and took her out of the apartment, back toward the service elevator.  
>They rode in silence down to the garage behind the dojo. He unlocked the door to his truck and Regina got in on the passenger side.<p>

Rocky stuck the key in the ignition and headed out of the parking lot and onto the street. He headed toward the hotel just outside of town. He wanted nothing more than Regina to have the baby and then leave town the same way she had come. What happened with the baby was another matter for Rocky altogether.

Meredith was sitting on the couch, trying to figure out why Rocky had lied to her. She wasn't sure exactly why he wasn't being truthful, but if she knew one thing about her husband, he loved her. No matter what, Meredith would bet her life on that fact.

She tucked her legs underneath her and wrapped the arms around her. She fought the urge to call Rocky's cell phone. As much as she hated knowing he lied to her, she still trusted him and was going to hold onto that until she had proof otherwise. She just hoped that, after everything she had done for him and the tight grip she had on his heart, he wouldn't break it.

She got off the couch and headed to the window. She saw Rocky's red truck pull out of the garage and onto the street. She thought she saw a young woman in the passenger seat. 'I know there's a good explanation for this, Rocko so you have to give it to me,' she thought to herself. She turned away from the window and went into the kitchen. She made herself a cup of tea and sat down in the dining room, waiting for Rocky to return to the apartment.

Rocky parked in front of the hotel. He left Regina in the car and went inside to pay for a room.  
>"Hi. I need to get a room for a friend of mine. Preferably one on the ground floor. I'll leave my credit card number for you because I don't know how long she's going to need to stay. She's pregnant and will need the room until she checks into the hospital. Can you help me with that," Rocky asked, flashing his smile to the lady behind the counter.<br>"Of course. We can give her a room near the desk here for three weeks. The hotel is booked up after that date for all the graduations that are happening," the girl, who's name tag identified her as Sylvia, said.

"That's fine," Rocky said, handing over his card to the lady. He signed the slip and took the key. He helped Regina into the room.

"Don't call me. Make sure you check in at the hospital so you can have the baby there. Here," he said, setting her bag on the bed and tossing a some money on the dresser. He didn't know how much he had crumpled up in his pocket but it should be enough to get her transportation to the hospital. He left. Regina was left in a hotel room, alone. She sat on the bed and willed herself not to cry. The one person she thought she could count on had just abandoned her. Regina had never felt so alone in her life.

Rocky walked passed the desk and said, "Can you make sure that Ms. Smith gets at least two meals? You can charge them to that number. Here's my cell if there are any problems with the card," Rocky said, writing the number on a piece of paper and turning around. He could feel the eyes of the check-in clerk watching him as he left. He didn't care what she was thinking. He just wanted Regina to stay until the baby was born and then he'd figure out the next step.

***So, what's next? The guys are going to get Kimberly and Tommy's going to get a surprise. Have you figured out Regina and Rocky?*** -mereditholiver


	55. Rescued

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters.

RESCUED

Jason assembled the former rangers on the ship with Andros.

"Tommy not coming," Andros asked.  
>"He doesn't know we're going to get Kim. I don't want to get his hopes up and I don't want him to go off half cocked and do something stupid. He has a tendency to do that when it comes to either Kim or Meri," Jason said, sitting at the table.<p>

"We should be there soon, so do you have a plan," Andros asked.

"Go in and get her. Of course, I can't imagine it will be that easy, but we shall see," Jason replied.

The rangers fell into silence. Eric moved over next to Adam. "Hey, have you spoken with Rocky," Eric asked.  
>"Not since he came home. Talked to Meri," Adam said.<br>"Do you know anyone named Regina," Eric asked.  
>Adam thought for a minute. "Don't know anything about anyone named Regina. Why," Adam asked.<br>"A woman came into the dojo and asked for Rocky. He apparently knew her and took her to my apartment to talk to her," Eric told Adam.

"Might be an old friend from college or his architecture firm. Rocky's office is in Los Angeles and he works from home most of the time, so they might have come to see him," Adam said.  
>"Maybe, but she was pregnant. Ready to pop pregnant," Eric said.<p>

Adam looked at Eric. He knew what Eric was trying to say, but didn't want to voice. Adam shook his head.  
>"What ever you're thinking, you're wrong," Adam said.<br>"I just hate to think he's doing anything to hurt Meri," Eric said.  
>"Rocky loves that woman. Fiercely. There's nothing he would do to hurt her, I know that," Adam said.<p>

Jason glanced over at the two rangers, causing them to cease their conversation and focus on the upcoming landing on the moon.

"I can't find any guards, but you know that the palace is shielded so we might not know anything until we get there," Billy said.

They all nodded their heads. They understood there was a possibility that they might be injured or worse, killed in their rescue of Kimberly. They said a prayer for the power to protect them and exited the ship.

Zordon saw his original rangers and their replacements exit the ship to rescue his crane. The one ranger he felt the closest to during his tenure as mentor of the team. He hadn't figured out how to help the other rangers, but he knew something he could do in his present state to help these rangers with their mission. A blast of energy lit up the surface of the moon, revealing the palace and all it's hidden dangers. The light lit the moon's surface up like the sun shining on a bright day on Earth. He smiled, hoping the rangers got his message.

The minute they stepped off the ship, the rangers were momentarily blinded by a blast of energy that lit up the palace and the moon's surface. Jason stopped in mid-stride and looked around. Then he felt a calming presence and knew what had happened.  
>"Zordon," Jason said at the same time as Zack, Billy and Adam.<p>

"I always thought he was looking out for us," Billy said.  
>"Let's go. I think we can go in and rescue Kim without a hassle," Jason said.<br>The rangers took off running into the palace. Billy's hand held device pinged as they approached the site that he felt held Kimberly.

"This is it," Billy said, standing before a stone door.

Jason turned the knob. He wasn't surprised to find the door locked.  
>"Any ideas," Jason asked. He pushed on the door, but found it was solid.<p>

"Well, maybe I could try picking the lock. I know it's not high tech, but sometimes low tech gets the job done," Eric said.  
>Jason nodded and Eric set about his work. He pulled his lock set out of his pocket, knowing he was getting questioning looks from everyone. "I'll explain later," he said.<p>

He made short work of the lock and had the door opening.  
>Jason entered, followed by Adam, Zack, Billy and Eric. They found Kimberly tied to a chair. She appeared to be sleeping.<p>

The sight of his dearest friend in such a state stabbed Jason in the heart.

"Kimmy," he called.  
>Kim's head shot up. "Jason," she said.<br>"Yep, I brought some friends and we're going to take you home," he said, untying his friend.  
>"Where's Tommy," Kim asked.<br>"Jason didn't want Tommy to know what was happening. He didn't want Tommy to get his hopes up, just in case we were wrong," Billy said.  
>Jason picked up Kim and carried her out of the room and out of the palace. They got her back aboard the ship and took her to the medical bay to be evaluated.<br>Andros scanned Kimberly, but could find nothing wrong with her. He was surprised to find the former pink ranger was pregnant. He looked at Kimberly who nodded her head. "I know and so does Tommy," she said.  
>Jason shot a look at both of them. "Know what," he asked.<p>

Billy and Adam helped Kimberly sit up on the exam table. "I'm pregnant, again," she said to Jason.

"Tommy told us when we went to rescue Rocky. I told him it was weird because Kat is pregnant, too," Jason said.  
>"It's about to get weirder because Aisha just told me before I left that she was pregnant again. Surprise," Zack said, his grin a mile long.<br>"Congrats man! Maybe you'll have a boy this time," Jason said.  
>"You know, that's the weird thing. We all have girls. Adam and Tanya have Jasmine; you and Kat have Chloe; Tommy and Kim have Siobhan. Aisha and I have the twin girls. I wonder when Meredith and Rocky have kids they will have a girl first," Zack said.<br>"I hadn't noticed that, but you're right. It is a bit heavy on pink in our group," Kim said.

"It seems like a coincidence. I wonder what the second child you all have will be," Billy said.  
>"I wonder if Meredith and Rocky's will be a girl," Adam said out loud. Realizing what he said, he quickly looked around to see if anyone noticed.<br>"Is Meri pregnant," Jason asked.  
>Adam hoped his best friend would forgive him for letting the secret out. "Yeah. Meri found out right before the moon mission ended. Her plan was to tell Rocky when he got home. She told him after he was found. Tanya and I knew because we were helping her during Rocky's absence," Adam said.<br>"Why didn't she tell anyone," Zack asked.  
>"She was scared she had lost Rocky. They've been trying to have kids since they got married. Everyone else was having kids and she and Rocky were striking out every month. Meri was having fertility tests and thinking of having treatments depending on those test results. It was hard for her. She felt she was letting Rocky down because she hadn't gotten pregnant. She's so happy to be pregnant now, but she doesn't want to jinx it. Tanya and I just found out she's pregnant again. Another surprise," Adam said.<br>"OK, you have to admit this is kind of weird. We're pregnant at the same time," Kim said.  
>"It's definitely unusual," Billy said.<br>They landed at the hanger, talking about joint baby showers and such. Jason called Tommy, telling him he had something to tell him regarding Kimberly.  
>The group went their separate ways, Jason taking Kimberly in his Mustang to her house.<p>

Kimberly jumped out of the car and burst through the back door. "TOMMY," she yelled.  
>"KIM," he said, running into the kitchen.<br>They ran into each others arms and held on for dear life. Jason watched the reunion from the back deck before he slunk back off the deck.

As he was leaving, he found a note under the wiper of Tommy's Jeep. He took the note and went to the back door. He knocked and Kim waved him inside.  
>"Sorry I didn't thank you for saving my girl," Tommy said, hugging Jason. "Thank you," Tommy said.<br>"No problem. She's special to me, too. I'll tell you all about it later, but I found this under your Jeep's windshield wiper," Jason said, handing the note to Tommy.  
>Tommy looked at the envelope. The handwriting looked a bit familiar, but he couldn't place it. He opened the envelope and the only thing inside were two pictures. One showed his college dorm he lived in for a semester when he transferred to an East coast school and another of a woman with a pregnant belly. The face of the woman was cut out, but Tommy knew the woman was pregnant. Who the woman was eluded him.<br>"What is it, Tommy," Kim asked, taking the photos.  
>"What is this," she asked, pointing at the pictures.<br>"I don't know. I wonder if it has anything to do with what happened to you," Tommy asked.  
>"But why are you getting a picture of a pregnant woman. Is this person trying to say that's your child," Kim asked.<br>"They could say anything they wanted, but I didn't sleep with anyone when we were apart. I didn't even date. Just studied and wanted to graduate," he said.  
>"You never talked about your time on the East Coast," Jason said, looking at the pictures.<p>

"Not much to say. I studied and got good grades. Didn't have any distractions, but I realized mid way through the semester that I missed California. I think I wanted to run away from the memories of California, but I loved the place too much to be gone for too long. I came back and moved back in with you, until I bought this house," Tommy said.  
>"Well, maybe Kim's stalker is related to your time out there," Jason said.<p>

"Don't see how. I never and I mean never talked about Kimberly. It hurt too much," Tommy said.  
>Jason sat the photos on the counter. "Well, think about that time and see if you can come up with someone who might do this. I'm going to head back to Katherine. Get some rest, Kimmy," Jason said, giving his best friend a hug and kiss.<br>"I'll do my best, Jase," she said.  
>Jason waved and went back out the door. He got in his car and headed home to Katherine. He called Meredith, just in case she hadn't heard the news from Eric or Adam.<p>

"Hello," she said, sounding distracted.

"Meri, you OK," Jason asked, immediately concerned for his friend.  
>"Yeah, just tired. Emotional rollercoaster the last few days. What's up," she asked.<br>"Just dropped Kimberly off at home. She and Tommy are having a reunion. Just thought I'd tell you. We had to get in there quickly, so we didn't get Tommy involved. I thought Rocky might be too tired from his ordeal to help, so I left him out of it. Plus I thought you'd kill me if I took him along on another mission," Jason said.  
>"You got that right. Well, I'm glad Kimberly's home. I'm sure Tommy will call later and let me know that she's home. Thanks for saving her. I know Tommy's very appreciative of what you just did," Meredith said.<br>"You sure you're alright, Merideri," Jason asked, throwing in his nickname for her, showing that he cared.  
>"Yes, Jase. I promise I'm fine. If I wasn't, I would tell you, OK," she said.<br>"Well, I'm here if you need me," Jason said.  
>"I know. I'll talk to you later," she said, ending the call.<p>

Jason pulled into his driveway, his conversation with Meredith bothering him. He and Meredith might not be as close when they were dating as she and Rocky were, but Jason knew his former girlfriend well enough to know something wasn't right. 'She'll tell me. When she's ready," Jason said to himself before going into the house to Katherine.

***Kimberly's back. Tommy's got some weird pictures and Jason thinks Meri's got something bothering her. And Eric thinks Rocky's up to something. (Anyone else think Eric cares about Meri more than just a friend?)*** -mereditholiver


	56. Prelude

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapter. Nothing has changed.

PRELUDE

Rocky arrived back home, parking his truck in the garage. He walked to the service entrance and let himself into the back. He walked to the front of the dojo. He wanted to check in with Eric and see how things were going. Meredith had said she wanted him to skip work for the week, but Rocky had to check on the business.

"Callie, where's Eric," Rocky asked, shocked that his trusted manager wasn't at the front desk or in the office.  
>"He had an emergency. He went off to help Jason," she said, returning to her filing.<br>"Oh. Well, I'll talk to him later then. Everything going well today," he asked, taking the schedule from the desk.

"Everything is going well. We've actually got a waiting list for some classes. Especially those that your brother-in-law teaches. He's got a list for his first class that filled up in ten minutes," she said.  
>"That's great. Tommy's classes were always popular when we were in high school," Rocky said.<br>"There's also a waiting list for your new classes," she said.  
>"Wow. I wasn't expecting that. Well, I'm heading home. See you later, Callie," Rocky said. He exited the office and took the elevator back upstairs. He got off the elevator and unlocked the front door of his apartment.<p>

"Hey, babe! I'm back," he said.

Meredith sat in the dining room, holding a mug of tea in her hand. She didn't acknowledge his presence, so Rocky went into the dining room to see her.  
>"Babe, you OK," Rocky asked.<br>"Oh, hey. I'm fine. Just lost in thought. Eric called and said they rescued Kimberly. I'm sure Tommy's glad for that," Meredith said.  
>"That's great. Maybe things will get back to normal," he said.<br>"So, what was the big emergency," she asked, getting up from her seat and going into the kitchen.

"Just something I had to take care of quickly," he said, not lying but not revealing the whole truth.

"Oh, so that's why you had to head out of the garage," she asked.  
>"Yeah. Had to run out and take care of something," he said. Rocky looked at his wife. "You sure you're OK, babe," he asked.<br>"Tired. I've had a bit of morning sickness. Hence the tea," she said, holding up the mug.  
>"Oh, Meri, I'm sorry. Do you want to lie down? I'll bring you something for dinner in bed if you want," he said.<br>"I might go upstairs for a bit. I just hope this morning sickness ends soon. This is miserable," she said.  
>She kissed her husband and he followed her upstairs. Meredith slipped off her slippers and crawled under the covers. Much like she'd done for him when he came home, he pulled the covers up to her chin. He kissed the top of her head.<p>

"I love you, babe," he said.  
>"Love you, too," she said, before being cut off by a yawn.<p>

Rocky went back downstairs and grabbed a juice out of the fridge. He leaned against the fridge, thinking about the day.

He couldn't believe Regina had come back into his life and she was pregnant. He didn't know how he was going to explain this to Meredith. He prayed he'd find a way to tell his wife the situation without losing her completely.

Regina sat on the hotel room bed. She didn't understand how things could have gone so horribly wrong. All she wanted was some compassion but it looked like she wasn't getting here.  
>Deciding it was better to stay at the hotel until the baby was born, she made herself comfortable on the bed. The front desk said Rocky was paying for two meals from the motel's restaurant, so she'd at least eat until she had the baby. She had an emergency stash that had a few hundred dollars in it and Rocky provided her with some extra cash so she'd have transportation to the hospital. She decided tomorrow she'd check out the hospital and at least register so she wouldn't have any problems. She also figured she check out Rocky's wife. She knew she worked at the hospital so she'd kill two birds with one stone, or 'Rock' she thought to herself. Regina leaned back and smiled.<p>

***Uh oh!*** -mereditholiver


	57. Shots In the Dark

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters.

SHOTS IN THE DARK

"Do you have any idea about those photos, Tommy," Kimberly asked.  
>"I can't think of anything. Why would someone send me pictures of my dorm room from 18 months ago and a photo of a pregnant woman? It doesn't make any sense. I have no idea what the world is going on or how this is connected to your kidnapping," Tommy said, holding Kimberly as they watched Siobhan play on the floor. Her shouts of 'mama' made Kimberly smile.<p>

Jason brought Katherine some toast. Her morning sickness was horrendous this time around and he was worried she wasn't eating enough.  
>"Jason, stop. It's normal for a woman to be sick in the beginning. I was sick with Chloe, remember," she said, nibbling the toast.<br>"Not this sick," he said, concern in his deep brown eyes.  
>Katherine reached up and touched his cheek. "I'm fine. You need to go back to work. Everything is going to be just fine. You got Rocky back and Kimberly is home and we're all going to have kids the same age. That will be fun, don't you think," she said. Her smile caused Jason to smile back at her.<br>"Yes, ma'am," he said, taking her hand and kissing it. "I'll head in for few hours. I'm actually missing the excitement of patrol, if you can believe that. It's not as crazy as our lives as rangers. The calm is a welcome diversion. I'll see you in a few. You going to be OK with Chloe," he asked, getting his work clothes out of the closet.

"Yeah. Your mom's taking her for a few hours today, remember," Katherine said.  
>"Right. I forgot," Jason said, smiling.<br>"You're hanging out too much with Tommy. His bad habit is wearing off on you," Katherine said.  
>"That's harsh, comparing me to Oliver. I'll see you in a few hours. Call if you need anything," he said. He kissed his wife and daughter good-bye and headed off to work. Katherine watched him pull out of the driveway feeling sick and it had nothing to do with being pregnant. She was used to worrying about him as a ranger and now as a cop, but this was different. Katherine felt something was off and she didn't know what to do about it. She gathered Chloe's things and put them in her bag. Jason's mom would arrive soon to take her grandchild for the day and Katherine was glad she was going because her worry for her husband was distracting.<p>

Regina called a taxi and had it take her to the hospital. She wanted to preregister for her impending delivery and hoped to catch a glimpse of the wife Rocky was so afraid Regina was going to hurt.

Regina answered all the standard questions.

"OK, Ms. Smith. Do you have someone that can be listed as your next of kin," the clerk asked her.  
>Regina thought for a moment and said, "Rocky D."<p>

"Do you have a number for him," the clerk asked.

"555-7625. That 's the number to his business. He's changed his cell, so I don't have the new number," Regina said quickly.

"OK. You're all checked in. You will be able to go right up to maternity when it's time to have your baby," the clerk said.

"Do you know anyone named DeSantos that works here," she asked the clerk.  
>"The only DeSantos I know is Dr. DeSantos. She's an orthopaedic surgeon. She's also the daughter of well known orthopaedic surgeon James Oliver. She operated on my son's arm a few weeks ago and he's already do his therapy and doing better than they thought he would be at this time," the clerk said.<br>Regina tired not to register her shock. Rocky was married to a doctor. Regina knew his wife worked in the hospital, but she thought she was a nurse. She thanked the clerk and headed back outside to catch a cab.  
>When she got back to the room, she sat herself down on the bed. As long as Rocky was married to a doctor, there wasn't any reason for her to stay. He had his family in a neat package and didn't have room for her.<p>

She took out a piece of paper and wrote a letter to Rocky and put it in her pocket. They'd give it to him when they found it.  
>The tears poured down Regina's cheeks and she didn't bother to stop or wipe them away. She went to the closet and withdrew a small handgun. She saw no other way out and just hoped someone could save her unborn child. The grief and pain was too great. She had to do it and she had to do it now. There was no hope for her.<p>

She took the gun back to the bed and sat down. She was about to pull the trigger, when there was a knock on the door.  
>She opened the door to reveal the helpful clerk that had been in the front yesterday. "I was checking to see if you had gotten your dinner from the diner, yet," Sylvia asked.<br>"I was going to after I took a little rest. This baby is just getting to be too big for me," she said, smiling.

"OK, well, I was just checking on you," she said.  
>Regina thanked her and shut the door.<p>

Sylvia didn't like what she had seen in that hotel room. There was, what she thought, was a gun on the bed and she also thought she saw several syringes around the place, too.

She placed a call to the police who promised to be out there soon to check things out.

"4-3, can you landline," the dispatcher asked Jason and his partner Caleb.

"10-4," Caleb answered as Jason called on the cell.  
>"This is officer Scott, what's up," he asked.<br>"We got a call from a hotel employee. They have a lady who seems to be acting strange. She has a gun on the bed and what looks like drug residue on the bathroom counters. They are worried about the condition of the lady inside," the dispatcher told Jason.

"Well, head over there and see if we can help," Jason said. He hung up the phone and he and his partner went to the hotel outside of town.

The clerk was waiting for them in the lobby. She directed them to the room and Jason knocked on the door.

She answered the door looking horrible. She looked like she was about to deliver her baby, but Jason could tell something was seriously wrong with this woman. He and his partner entered the room pushing her back without touching her.  
>"Miss, don't you want to give me the gun," Jason asked.<br>"I can't do this anymore," she said.

"Can't do what? Think about your baby you're going to have? Don't you want to live so it has a mother," Jason pleaded with the woman. There was something familiar in the way she looked at him. A look he'd seen before, but he couldn't place it.

"Please, tell Rocky I'm sorry," she said. She raised the gun. Jason rushed her, but was shot in the arm before she shot herself in the head.

***This seems a bit like a cop out for me, doesn't it? Well, will we find out the mystery behind Rocky and Regina? What's going to happen to Jason?*** -mereditholiver


	58. Aftermath

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters

AFTERMATH

It happened too quickly for either officer to do anything. Caleb shot at the same time she did, but hit her leg. That shot caused hers to go slightly off the mark.

"Damn it," Jason said. Caleb checked for a pulse and found one. It was slight, but it was there.  
>"Call for a bus and get her to the hospital so she can deliver that baby before she dies," Jason said before he collapsed on the floor.<p>

Caleb got the ambulance on it's way and kept an eye on both of the people in the room.

When the ambulance arrived, they took the pregnant woman first and immediately intubated her to increase her chances of delivering a healthy baby. They put oxygen on her face and scooped her up and headed to the hospital in the back of the ambulance.

A second crew began assessing Jason's condition. The paramedics believed he'd lost a significant amount of blood. Jason was groggy, but kept thinking what the woman was talking about when she apologized to Rocky. Was it Meredith's Rocky? His shoulder was throbbing and the paramedics gave him morphine and he fell back against the pillows. They transported him to the ER for treatment.

The ambulances pulled into the ambulance bay. Several employees were standing outside waiting on the pregnant patient.

"We've got fetal heart tones and movement. Don't know how far along," the first paramedic said.

The head of obstetrics took one look at the patient and turned to the staff. "Take her to the OR right now. We'll deliver the baby now and send it to Neo for them to evaluate," the doctor said.

The paramedics and staff rushed the patient inside and down the hallway to the OR.

On the way down to the OR, one nurse called the Neo nursery. Kimberly answered the call.

"Kim, we've got a critical down here. You want to come to the OR and assess the baby," the ER nurse asked.  
>"I'm on my way," she said, wrapping her stethoscope around her neck. She knew Tommy thought she was returning to work too soon after her ordeal, but getting her degree to treat babies was the pinnacle for her. She knew Tommy hated teaching and she hoped he would see he could continue teaching at Rocky's dojo. Kimberly knew he enjoyed teaching the kids much better than punching a clock at a school.<p>

Kimberly entered the OR corridor, pushing the code on the door to allow her entrance. She felt the zing of energy that came from the staff working feverishly to save a life. She pushed the baby warmer parked next to the OR suite inside the room and stood in the back, waiting for her patient.

She took a minute to observe the mother. She saw a woman with matted hair from the blood, on a ventilator with an obvious pregnancy. She wondered what had happened to this woman and knew she'd hear the story when the doctor and nurse gave their report.

The doctor delivered a crying baby girl. Kimberly's initial assessment was the baby didn't look preterm, but she pulled out her stethoscope and began assessing the screaming, squirming infant on her warming bed.  
>The child looked healthy and in good condition despite her rather tragic delivery into the world.<p>

Kimberly took the baby back the Neo nursery to a more complete assessment of the patient.

In the OR, the doctor closed the c-section and they prepared to transport her to the CT scanner. Everyone knowing the patient had a devastating injury. Delivering the baby was the obvious decision, but the staff was saddened the mother would never know her child and they set back to find out what had caused this tragedy.

The doctors made the decision to put her on life support while they searched for her relatives.

The doctor entered the room Jason was occupying. He had to admit his shoulder was killing him, but he was more preoccupied with the situation he had walked in on and been shot. He'd talked to his boss and no one found any fault with what had happened.

Jason knew this would sit in his head for a while. He wondered what the department psychologist would think about what had happened and how he was processing the information.

He turned to his partner, who had regained his color following the shooting.  
>"Caleb, who was that woman," Jason asked.<p>

"Name was Regina Smith. Was staying in the room that was paid for using the credit card of a Rocky DeSantos. He left his cell in case of a problem with the card. Hospital said he was listed as her emergency contact. Well, at least his business number was listed. She checked in early to deliver the baby. Didn't list a father apparently.

Jason watched his partner. He couldn't believe his friends were involved in this. He couldn't believe Rocky had a connection to this pregnant woman. He knew he'd have to find out what exactly was going on with his former team mate before Tommy jumped to conclusions and kicked his ass. Jason didn't think Meredith would forgive Tommy for that if it happened.

The ER doctor entered the room with the report on Jason's condition.

"Officer Scott, your wife is on her way. We assured her you were fine, but were going to need some surgery to repair that shoulder and tendon. We're calling one of our new orthopeadic surgeons to take a look at your films and take you to the OR," the doctor said.  
>"Katherine is pregnant, you didn't upset her did you," Jason asked, concern for his wife mounting.<p>

"She was on her way. She was getting a friend to drive her here, so she wouldn't have to do it herself. She's handling this very well, as most cop wives do," the doctor said.  
>"Which doctor will be seeing me," Jason asked.<br>"Dr. Meredith DeSantos," he said.  
>Jason smiled. At least Meredith would do his surgery.<p>

"Do you know Dr. DeSantos," the doctor asked.  
>"We went to high school together. Only she was Meredith Oliver at the time. I'm good friends with her twin brother," Jason said, leaving out that he used to date the young doctor. That was in the past.<br>Satisfied that his patient was comfortable with the plan of care, the doctor left the room to talk to Meredith.

***Whew! That was close. Jason's fine, but, sadly, Regina isn't. The baby is fine. Will Rocky's connection to her be revealed?*** -mereditholiver


	59. Wake Up Call

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters.

WAKE UP CALL

Meredith was finishing up the wonderful meal Rocky had prepared them when her cell rang.  
>"That's work," she said, taking the phone.<p>

"This is Dr. DeSantos," she said.

"Hey, Meri, it's Paula. We have an officer here who was shot during an altercation. He was shot in the shoulder and the ER doctors think he'll need surgery. You apparently went to high school with this gentleman," she said.

Meredith heart hit her shoes. 'Please, don't tell me it is Jason,' she thought to herself.  
>"Who," Meredith asked.<p>

"Jason Scott," Paula answered.

Thanks, Paula. I'll be there shortly," she said.

Meredith sank into the chair behind her.  
>"What's wrong, babe," he asked, immediately concerned.<br>"Jason's been shot and I have to go do an ortho repair on him," she looked at him.  
>"Can you drive me? I don't know if I can do it and I have to get my head in the game so I can operate," she said.<p>

"Of course. Let's go," Rocky said, helping Meredith out of the chair. They headed for his truck and Meredith briefly remembered what she had seen earlier today. She pushed the thoughts out of her mind and they headed to the hospital.

"Did this woman, Regina, leave any information," Kimberly asked as she entered some numbers into the computer.  
>As near as she could figure. This baby was full-term. It showed no signs of problems or anything after the near suicide of her mother. She was on life support at the moment while they assessed her brain injury, but the doctors were not hopeful it would end happily. Kimberly's heart broke for the little girl who wouldn't know her mother.<p>

"She listed a Rocky as a contact with this number," the clerk told her, showing her the phone number. Kimberly recognized it immediately. It was Rocky's dojo number.

"Thanks, Susan. Did the ER notify him about Regina," Kimberly asked. Susan said she'd contact the ER and find out.  
>Kimberly leaned back. She didn't understand anything that was going on with this case. She hated to think what she was thinking, but all the signs were pointing to Rocky having fathered a child with someone that wasn't the woman he claimed as his soul mate. Kimberly was sick at the thought and tried to ignore it. She went back to her stack of patient charts when her cell rang.<p>

"This is Kimberly Hart," she said.

"Kim, it's Kat. Jason's in the ER. He's been shot, but they said he's fine. He needs surgery so I'm down here waiting for the surgeon. I know you're working and thought you might pop down and let me know what's going on with him," Katherine said, her voice calm, but stressed.  
>"I'll be there in a few," she said, hanging up. "I've got a friend in the ER. I'm heading down. Page me if you need me," she said, heading out the door.<p>

She found Katherine sitting by Jason's bed, holding his hand. Her best friend was sleeping with a large amount of gauze around the wound in his shoulder.

"Hey, Kat," she said.  
>Katherine nodded and kept her eyes on Jason. Kimberly was about to say something when a doctor entered the room. Katherine and Kimberly were both surprised to see Meredith standing in the room.<br>"Meri are you Jason's doctor," Katherine asked.  
>"As long as he needs a tendon repair and some plating in this humerous, I am," she said.<p>

"Thank you. Guess I don't have to worry about my husband's doctor. He's in good hands," Katherine said, hugging Meredith.

Meredith smiled.

Meredith looked at the sight of her former boyfriend in the hospital. It was a scene she didn't ever want to see, but she was glad she was there to help him. She greeted Kimberly and Katherine and focused on her patient.

"Jase, I need you to wake up for a minute," she said.

Jason opened his brown eyes and smiled at Meredith. "Hey, Meri. You gonna fix my arm or just get a free peek."

"You know I always thought you were a sight without a shirt, but I'm going to fix your arm this time. That is, if you want me to do it," she said.  
>"Glad it's you," he said, closing his eyes.<p>

"Jase, I'm going to repair that tendon and put a few screws and hardware in your upper arm. Anesthesia will talk to you about what anesthesia they'll want to use. I'll keep you here for a few days and get you started on some PT before you go. You should know all about that," she said.  
>Jason opened one eye and cocked his eyebrow. "Guess I should think about going back to PT, huh," he said.<p>

Meredith touched his other shoulder. She knew he had enjoyed PT, but becoming a cop was something he felt passionate about. "I'll do my best to get you back to doing what ever you want to do, Jase. Trust me on that," she said to him.

She turned to Katherine. "Any questions?"

"No, I know you'll take excellent care of Jason," Katherine said. She hugged Meredith and turned back to her husband.  
>"We'll come and get him in a few minutes, after anesthesia takes care of him," she said, exiting the room.<p>

She went to the desk and filled out the necessary information on the computer to admit Jason to her service.

"I'm going to the OR. When anesthesia is finished, send Mr. Scott down to the OR," she told his nurse, Rebecca.

"Sure thing, Dr. DeSantos," Rebecca said.

Meredith took the chart and went down the hallway toward the OR. She pulled out her cell phone and called Rocky.

"Babe, is everything OK," he asked.

"Yeah, I have to repair Jason's arm, but he's going to be fine. I can't tell you how much I felt for Katherine. She was fine because he was going to be OK, but I know I was a basket case on the inside when you got hurt in high school and I was miserable when you were missing. I just don't want anything to happen to you," Meredith said.  
>"I'll be around for as long as you'll keep me. I'm planning on forever, babe," he said.<br>"I'm heading to the OR, so I'll call when I'm ready for you to pick me up," she said.

"OK, I love you, babe," he said.  
>"I love you, too," she said. She slipped the phone back in her pocket and entered the OR.<p>

***Off to the OR. What's next you ask? Kimberly and Tommy's problem? Another Jason saga? Something with one of the other rangers?*** -mereditholiver


	60. Another?

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters

ANOTHER?

Tommy sat in his office, grading papers. His job as a teacher wasn't something he had planned on doing, but after his experience with Anton Mercer, he figured teaching was a better than that mess.

He opened his email. He skimmed through the various senders and clicked on one from his friend from his college days.

_'Tommy, I hope you are doing well and making headlines in the paleontology world. I've decided to leave the corporate scene and head back to the West Coast. Boston was fine for college and what not, but working for some big company doing computer security isn't my style. _

_Anyway, I'm heading back to my roots. My parents left me a house in Reefside, so I figured it was sign. I'm opening a Cybercafe nearby and try my hand at business owner. Thought we could reconnect when I arrived. I'll email you when I get to Reefside and we can meet up. See you later! Hayley_

Tommy was surprised the Hayley was returning to California. She hadn't said anything positive about her home state the whole time he was in college with her.

He sent off a quick reply: _Hay, Good to hear from you. Was wondering if that corporate lifestyle was going to get to you sooner or later. I'm still living in Reefside and I'm getting married to Kimberly in a few weeks. We already have a child together, Siobhan and another on the way. I'll tell Kim to expect you for dinner when you arrive. Can't have you eating alone your first night in town, so let me know when you expect to arrive. I'll get you directions to my house. Congrats on the cafe, Tommy.'_

He sent the message and finished reading his email. He sat back in his desk chair and looked at the pictures on his desk. There was one of him and Kim; one with him Kim and Siobhan and one of him and Meredith that was taken at her wedding to Rocky. He felt good about having his family back together. He promised nothing was going to break them apart again.

"Hey, Eric. Everything OK," Rocky asked.  
>"Yeah, I just wanted to know what the story was with Regina," Eric asked.<br>Rocky swallowed. He knew if Eric thought Rocky was doing something to hurt Meredith, he would tell her. Despite Rocky and Eric being friends, Rocky knew Eric cared more about Meredith than he cared to admit. He knew the former ranger had feelings for his wife, which made this situation all the more 'sticky.'

"It's nothing. She's a friend and she came to me for help. I helped. Now I'm out of it," he said.

"Look, what you do is your business, but if you're doing something that is going to hurt Meredith, I can't allow that," Eric said.  
>"You don't have to worry about me and Meri. I would never hurt her," Rocky said.<br>"I'm just trying to look out for my friends," Eric said.  
>"Everything is fine, so just leave it alone," Rocky said.<br>He couldn't fault Eric for what he was saying. If Rocky were in Eric's shoes, he would tell Meredith in a heartbeat. Rocky ended the call and set his phone on the counter. He hoped this would be over because he didn't know how much longer he could keep this up.

Eric couldn't believe he'd actually asked Rocky about Regina. He couldn't jump to conclusions, despite how he wanted things to be. Meredith was married to Rocky and he had to understand that.

However, he swore that if Rocky had done anything to cause Meredith pain, he would make whatever Tommy did to Rocky, look like a picnic.

The dojo phone rang. Eric had brought the dojo phone to his apartment because he promised Rocky he'd arrange a meeting about expanding to two new locations. He'd given the dojo number to set up the meeting.

"Like a Rock Dojo and Dance, this is Eric," Eric said.  
>"I'm sorry, but this is AG General. We have a patient that listed this number as an emergency contact and someone named Rocky. Do you know anyone by that name," the lady asked.<br>"He owns this dojo. Would you like his cell phone number. He's not here at the moment," Eric said.  
>"Please. Thank you for your assistance," she said.<br>Eric gave Rocky's cell to the lady and ended the call. He wondered what was going on and hoped it wasn't Meredith. Then again, Meredith wouldn't have given the number to the dojo if she was in trouble. He tried to ignore it and went back over the schedules he had been working on before he called Rocky.

Rocky went back to his cooking.

His cell phone rang again. He recognized the hospital extension.

"Hello," he said, fully expecting his wife or Kimberly or Katherine to update him on Jason's condition.

"Mr. DeSantos. This is AG General. We received a patient who has your number listed as it's emergency contact. We call the number she gave and Eric gave us your cell phone to contact you. We have Regina Smith here. Can you come to the hospital and meet with the doctors," she asked.  
>Rocky couldn't believe it. Once again Regina had managed to drag him into her little world. Now she was at the hospital and, after telling her not to, he was being called to come. Having her on Meredith's turf really scared him. Knowing he was going to have to go to the hospital and see what Regina was after, he decided to tell Meredith what was going on when she was out of surgery. He just hoped Eric didn't see him rushing out of the apartment and ask what was going on with that phone call. 'No need to cause any more problems. Just hope he realizes soon what mistake he made,' Rocky thought to himself.<p>

***Now, we're finally getting somewhere.*** -mereditholiver


	61. Truth Comes Out

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters.

TRUTH COMES OUT

Meredith finished up Jason's tendon repair and placed some screws his humerus for stability. She didn't know what his mobility would be, but she hoped she'd done enough to get him back to where he was before the shooting.  
>She took off her OR cap and met with Katherine who had been joined by Tommy who was standing with Kimberly.<p>

"Sis, you finished," Tommy asked.

"Yes. I think the repair went well and Jason should get full movement back after some therapy," Meredith told Katherine.

"Thank you, Meri. I know you have done the best job for Jason," Katherine said, hugging Meredith.  
>"I'll check on him before I head out. Since I just did surgery, another doctor is going to take call. If anything happens or Jason needs anything, the nurses will call me. Dad will probably be on rounds in the morning, so he might check on Jase if I'm tied up," Meredith said.<br>She hugged everyone in the room and turned to head to the locker room. She checked on Jason in the recovery room and saw he was talking, however groggily to the nurses.

"Are you flirting, Jason Lee Scott," Meredith asked.  
>He smiled with his eyes closed. "You know me," he said.<br>"Amazing! It must be inherent trait. You're in the hospital and you're flirting with everyone. Including your doctor," she said.

"Am I going to be good, doc," he asked.  
>"I think so. You're going up to a room in a few and they'll call me if you need anything. I'm sure Katherine will want to stay with you," Meredith said.<br>"She can't do that. She needs to go home and sleep. She's got a baby coming and she has Chloe," Jason said.  
>"Well, if she wants to stay, I won't stop her, but you might suggest it. Get some rest. It's going to hurt like a bitch in the morning. Trust me," she said.<br>"Thanks, Meri. Say, Meri, the woman that shot me told me to apologize to Rocky for her? Do you know the woman that was in that room," Jason asked.  
>"I don't know who it was, Jase. I'll check and see, OK," she promised.<br>"Regina...something. You know I love you, right," he said.  
>"Yeah because I love you, too," she said.<p>

She left the recovery room and wondered about what Jason had said.  
>She went back to the ER to see if she could gather any information on the woman that shot Jason.<p>

She entered the ER and went to see Paula.  
>"Paula, do you know anything about the person that shot Mr. Scott," she asked.<p>

"She was pregnant and she had the baby by c-section not long after she arrived. She's on life support in the neurological ICU. The found her identification and a note on her body for a Rocky. Don't know if they got a hold of him or not," Paula said.  
>"OK, thanks. I'll see you later," she said.<br>"Hey, how weird is that. Another Rocky. Maybe they should meet," Paula said.  
>"I hope not. Bye," Meredith said, walking out of the ER. The short walk to the door was the longest she had<p>

taken in her life.

She pulled out her cell and dialed Rocky.

"Hey babe," he said, but Meredith could tell he was preoccupied.  
>"I'm ready to head home. Wanna meet me in the cafeteria," she asked.<br>"Sure. I have something to take care of so I'll see you in 20 minutes," he said.  
>"OK," Meredith said, ending the call.<br>She stared at the cell phone and called Eric. She hated that she didn't trust her husband, but she had to know and Eric knew something. She'd bet on it.  
>"Meri? Everything OK," Eric asked.<br>"Just finished a tough surgery. Did Rocky go anywhere for the dojo this morning," she asked.  
>"No, can't think of anything," he said.<br>"OK. Do you know if he's home," she asked.  
>"Well, he got a phone call from the hospital and I think he left your apartment and is headed there. He met with this pregnant woman the other day. You didn't call him," he asked.<br>"I did, but I think his battery died. I wanted to know so I could figure out where he was so I could time my finishing up. He must be on his way, so I'll see him in a bit. Thanks Eric," she said, ending the call.

She stared at the cell phone, knowing the answer to her questions, but not wanting to hear them voiced out loud.

She went to the neurological ICU on a mission to find out about Regina Smith.

Meredith entered the ICU. She was about to ask about Regina when Rocky came through the door.  
>"Meri, what are you doing here," he asked.<p>

"Trying to figure out what the hell is going on with my husband," she said.

"Dr. DeSantos, what are you doing here," the unit secretary asked.  
>"My husband has a friend he wanted to visit so I said I'd meet him when I left the OR," Meredith said, shooting Rocky a glance.<p>

"Regina Smith," Rocky said.

"Oh, so this must be for you," the secretary said, handing him a letter. Rocky took the envelope. He assumed it was from Regina.

"She's in number 5."

The two walked into her room and Rocky was overcome by what he saw. Regina was on a ventilator and had bandages around her head. Her eyes were swollen and her whole face look bruised. Rocky couldn't believe it. Despite everything Regina had done, he didn't want her to die like this with no one caring.  
>"She's not going to make it, you know that right? They delivered a baby after she arrived," Meredith said.<p>

Rocky didn't say a word, he looked at the sight before him. He turned to Meredith. "Can we get out of here, please," he said.

Meredith nodded and took his hand and led him out the door.

"They need you to go to the Neo nursery. They need someone to sign the paperwork for the little girl she delivered," the secretary told them.

Meredith stopped in mid-stride. She took a deep breath and kept walking out the door.

She found herself leading Rocky to the Neo nursery. She buzzed the door and they allowed them both entrance. Meredith hated Neo because it represented so many different emotions to an event that was supposed to bring unfathomable joy.

"Meri, Rocky. What a surprise," Kimberly said, greeting her friends.  
>"Regina's baby," Rocky said.<br>"It's a healthy little girl. I don't think she was early, so if we can get her to feed and gain a bit of weight, we'll let her go," Kimberly said. She desperately wanted to know what the connection was between Rocky, the baby and Regina, but she didn't want to pry.

"Can I come back later and see her," Rocky asked.  
>"Sure. The child has no other family," Kim said.<br>Rocky nodded and turned and headed back out of the nursery.

Meredith followed, apologizing to Kim as she exited the room. She had to run to catch up to Rocky who was at the elevators.

"You OK," she asked him.  
>"Just a bit much to take," he said.<br>"Let's go home," she said. She wanted to know what was going on, but getting her husband home and making him feel better was a higher priority for her.

They rode home in silence. Rocky let her out in front of the building while he parked the truck. Meredith unlocked the door and went upstairs. 

Eric heard the door unlock. He was going to go upstairs and talk to Meredith and Rocky about what was happening because, in Eric's mind, Meredith had to know.

"Meri, hey, got a second," he asked as he exited his apartment.  
>"Just a second. It's been a rough day for everyone today," she said, letting him into the apartment.<br>"I was about to have some tea, do you want some," she asked.  
>"Sure," he said. He thought about how to approach the subject, but couldn't think of a way. He just blurted it out.<br>"Meri, do you think Rocky cheated on you," he asked her.  
>Meredith looked at Eric. "NO," she said.<br>Eric was shocked. Surely with all the evidence pointing toward Rocky and infidelity, Meredith would have to see what was happening.

"Meri, he's meeting a pregnant woman in another persons apartment and he's rushing to the hospital to see them when the hospital calls. I know what's going on here," he said.  
>Meredith, close to tears, began pacing the room.<br>"Come on, Meri! It's right there," he said.  
>"What's right there," Rocky asked as he entered the apartment.<br>"That you've cheated on her with this Regina chick who's pregnant," Eric said.  
>Meredith looked at her husband and her friend. She didn't know what to believe because so much had happened in their lives that the unbelievable was probably the cause of everything.<p>

"Did you," Meredith asked in a near whisper.  
>Rocky looked like he'd been punched. "No," he whispered back, his body language saying he was disappointed to have been asked.<p>

"You want to know who Regina is? I'll tell you. Regina is my sister," Rocky said.

***Ta da! Did you see that coming? Now, why does Rocky hate her so much? Hayley arrives in town. Is she making trouble for our favorite ranger couple? ***-mereditholiver


	62. Who's the Daddy?

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters.

WHO'S THE DADDY?

Meredith looked at her husband. She felt like she, too, had been punched in the stomach. The look on Rocky's face when she actually asked if he'd cheated on her told her everything she needed to know. He was betrayed. Meredith knew she'd feel the same way if he'd asked the same question, despite knowing the truth.

"Sister," she said in a breathy voice.

"You don't have any sisters," Eric said, trying to figure out what the hell was going on with his friends. Meredith gave him a death glare and turned back to her husband.  
>"I don't understand," Meredith said.<p>

"She's only my half-sister," he said.  
>"Your dad," Meredith asked and Rocky nodded his head.<p>

"When," Meredith asked. Eric looked back and forth between his friends.

"In high school, Dad was dating Regina's mom before Mom moved to town. Dad broke up with Regina's mom when he realized he liked Mom. It wasn't until after they had had sex and Dad didn't know she got pregnant until four months later when they were preparing for the last summer before college. Regina's mom told him right before he went to the beach. Apparently, Mom's family and Dad's family went to the same beach. Dad didn't tell Mom because he didn't believe her. She left school before they started their senior year and, honestly, Dad forgot. He and Mom were soul mates they've always said," Rocky said.  
>"Yeah, she mentioned that when you were in the hospital. She said we reminded her of her and your dad in school," Meredith said.<br>"Well, apparently Regina found out who her father was and contacted Dad. He and Mom didn't know she existed until that day," Rocky said.

Meredith gasped.  
>"Oh, my God. You're dad's heart attack," she said, sitting on the couch.<p>

"Yeah. She called him first and told Mom all about him and her mom. Mom confronted Dad and he had the heart attack. Mom forgave him because it was, what how many years ago. Regina called me because, apparently, she thought she could work her way into my life and my little family. She's eight years older than I am and, apparently, hated the fact that I was the 'favorite' child. I was the one that was the oldest. She didn't seem to understand that Dad didn't really believe that she existed. She also hated that I'd made a success of myself. I had a successful career and business and was married. I tried to keep you out of things as much as possible because I didn't want her to upset the apple cart. I didn't want her in my life. She's evil," he said.  
>Meredith reached out to Rocky. He didn't respond. In fact, he looked away.<p>

Meredith tried to not feel the sting it left on her heart.

"What about the note," Meredith asked.  
>Rocky took the note out of the envelope and read it to Eric and Meredith.<p>

'Rocky, I'm sorry for causing you any pain. You've married a doctor and have everything I'm sure you were hoping for with her. There isn't any room in your family for me and I see there never was. I hate not being a part of anything. I feel like I've never had anyone who loved me. My mom always used me as a pawn in her relationships with other guys. She told me that our father didn't want anything to do with me and had a perfect family. She said he had boys and didn't want me since I was a girl. I know now that isn't true, but I still held resentment from it. I know my appearance has caused tons of problems for you and your family and that was never my intention. I am sorry for what I did. Please take care of my child until the father is located. If he doesn't want her, I hope that you and your wife will raise your niece as your own child. The father of my child is...' Rocky stopped reading and looked wide-eyed at his wife.

"She knows who the baby's dad is? Well, who is it," Meredith asked.  
>"You're not going to believe this," Rocky said and continued reading 'The father of my child is Eric Meyers. I hope you will one day forgive me for what I have done. Regina.'<p>

Both DeSantos' looked at their friend.  
>"Do you know anything about this," Rocky asked.<p>

Eric went white. He couldn't believe someone was accusing him of fathering their child. He shook his head.  
>Then it hit him. The reason she looked familiar to him. He thought when Rocky revealed it was his half-sister the reason was he saw Rocky in her, but he knew, now, it was something more.<p>

"She was that girl from right before you gave me the job and apartment. The one I hooked up with before Meri pulled me out of the bar and basically kicked my ass and gave me the job with you," Eric said. He sat on the chair nearest him, trying to fathom what had happened.

"You didn't recognize her," Meredith asked.  
>"I did, but I thought, after Rocky explained, that it was because they were related. I was in a bad way during that time, Meri. You know that. I can't believe I don't remember a night that created the biggest thing to happen in my life," he said.<br>"You have a kid. I'm sure Kimberly will want a paternity test. That is if you want to have custody of your daughter," Rocky said, his anger taking a back seat to the concern for his friend.

"What do I know about raising a kid," Eric asked. He looked at Rocky and Meredith. Meredith walked to the former ranger and enveloped him in a hug. She felt his tears on her shoulder and felt sorry for him. She knew this wasn't what he had wanted to find out, especially not this way.

"What do you want to do," Meredith asked.  
>"I don't know. I guess I should go and see her in the hospital. I'll decide what to do about custody after the paternity test. I'm so confused right now," Eric said.<br>"What I don't understand is why Regina didn't say anything to you," Rocky asked.  
>"Maybe she only realized it after we saw each other in the lobby," Eric said. He got up off the chair and headed toward the door. He turned back to Meredith. "Will you call Kimberly and see if I can see the baby," he asked.<p>

Meredith nodded and Eric headed out the door. Meredith called Kimberly and said Eric was headed to see the baby. She explained how Regina was Rocky's sister and had written a letter that said Eric was the father. Kimberly said she'd wait for Eric and arrange for a paternity test. What he was going to do was another matter.  
>Meredith ended the call and found herself in her bedroom. She pulled the bag from the closet and tossed in some clothes. She headed back downstairs.<br>"Kim's going to wait for Eric and get everything done for him. I'll call you from Tommy's," she said.  
>"Babe, don't," Rocky said.<br>"Don't you want me to go somewhere? I mean if you had doubts about me and questioned my faithfulness, you'd leave. You can't trust me," Meredith said, crying.

Rocky wrapped her in a hug. "Meri, I know why you did it. You were pressured. Eric would love nothing more than to prove I'd done something unforgivable in your eyes so you and I wouldn't be together. Am I disappointed, yes. Do I wish you'd never said anything? Yes. Do I not trust you, No. Meri, I trust you with everything. I trust you with my life. I trust you with my heart. You're having my child, that's the ultimate faith in someone. You have to believe that," Rocky said.

Meredith looked at her husband. Instead of the hurt she'd seen their earlier when she'd questioned him, she saw love.  
>"I'm so sorry. I love you," she said.<br>"That's better. Now, why don't you go and rest. I'll order out and we'll do a movie night. You've had a really emotional day and I've got to figure out what to do about what's happening with Regina. I'll see if I can find her mom and I guess I'll have to tell dad. Do you think she's going to make it," Rocky said.

Meredith knew he was torn. Rocky blamed Regina for what she had done to his father and mother, but she was his half-sister. Meredith wondered what she would do if she'd found out something about David when she and Tommy had found him.

"I don't know. Miracles have been known to happen," Meredith said.

Rocky nodded and wrapped Meredith in his arms.  
>Meredith and Rocky shared a kiss and she went back upstairs to replace the clothes in the drawers. She knew Rocky was hurt but, above all else, he'd forgive her, just like she'd forgive him.<p>

***Who kidnapped Kimberly?*** -mereditholiver


	63. Scenes

DISCLAIMER: See previous chapters.

SCENES

Hayley stood in her apartment. She had gotten Tommy's email about visiting, but she wasn't happy about it. He was still with Kim. She couldn't believe her luck. She was all set to have Tommy believe they had hooked up at a frat party and the child she had given birth to belonged to him. She couldn't see how he would believe her tale.

Things for Hayley had changed after she had her child. Unfortunately, the child didn't survive due to a preterm birth.  
>All the magic in the universe hadn't been able to help her child. Another reason she resented her parents.<p>

She'd spent her time figuring out how to get back at the one person she blamed for her situation.

She had tried to get with Tommy during the party, but he was mooning over Kimberly for some crazy reason. She didn't understand it because, during all their conversations, he'd been the one to end the relationship. How, if he'd called it quits, was he still in love with her.

Hayley had also become friends with Tommy's sister, Meredith. She'd come to visit on her break from med school in the spring. Meredith seemed the perfect sister and Tommy's best friend, another role Hayley had missed out on with Tommy. Hayley had tried to be the person he could confide in, trying to convince him that Meredith was on the other side of the country, busy with her life in medical school and her marriage to Rocky. Tommy had said she was there for him anyway and treated Hayley as a friend, just not the close friend and confidante she would have preferred.

She was satisfied the apartment was livable. She got on her computer and sent another email to Tommy, announcing her arrival. She wanted Kimberly out of the way and she was going to do it soon. She was tired of waiting around. Why her father had felt so drawn to the pink princess, she'd never know. Pink nauseated her.

_'T, I've arrived! I'm checking out some places to start the cafe. I'm thinking of renting the space next to the dojo in downtown. Catch the parents waiting for their kids and the kids after their classes. Seems like a good location. Hope to have it ready to open soon. Will meet for dinner. Here's my number. Text my anytime: 555-8390. Luv, H.'_

She sent the email and waited to see if Tommy wrote back or texted her. She couldn't wait to see her friend and hoped he'd be excited to see her. She hoped he'd gotten her little notes and was wondering what was going on with them. She also hoped Tommy didn't suspect anything of her because she wasn't ready to let Tommy get away from her.

"Don't worry, Tommy. I'll take good care of Kimmy," she said out loud.

Eric sat on his bed trying to figure out what he was going to do. Kimberly had ordered a paternity test and it proved what Regina's letter said. He was indeed the father of her child. Regina was still on life support in the NICU at the hospital. However, the doctors believed she might actually survive the ordeal. Despite being on a ventilator, her brain scan showed some brain activity. No one was sure exactly what condition she'd be in if or when she woke up.

Eric got up and went down the stairs to the small galley kitchen.  
>He couldn't believe what he'd said to Meredith and Rocky, especially after everything the former rangers had done to help him when he was in a bad place after he was finished being a ranger.<p>

Kimberly had asked what he was going to do about the child. Kimberly planned to release the still unnamed baby girl and she was going to go with Eric or be released to the custody of her uncle and aunt, Rocky and Meredith.

Eric didn't know how to take care of a child. He didn't know the first thing about what to do with a baby. He certainly didn't have a good role model in his father and he was scared. Eric didn't know if he could do it. Raise a child, alone.

He paced the small kitchen and wondered what he was going to do. He realized the best thing was to let Rocky and Meredith take the child. He knew they desperately wanted a child and Eric knew Rocky would know what to do. If the baby was upstairs, Eric knew he could be involved in the child's life, if he hadn't screwed up his friendship with the DeSantos'.

Eric opened the door and went upstairs to Rocky's. He knocked on the door and Meredith let him inside.  
>"What's up, Eric? Did you see Kimberly," she asked.<br>He hadn't spoken to the couple in several days and knew that Kimberly wouldn't tell anyone what had transpired because of his privacy.

"Yeah. She's actually ready to release the baby, but she has no name and no home to go to," Eric said.  
>"What do you mean? Aren't you going to take her," Meredith asked.<br>"I want to, but I'm in no position to be a father and raise a baby on my own," he said.  
>"What are you going to do? Put her up for adoption," Meredith asked.<br>"Well, I wanted to talk with you and Rocky about that," he said.  
>"Rocky," Meredith called.<br>Rocky came down the stairs and greeted Eric.  
>"Eric has something to talk to us about," Meredith said.<br>She led them into the living room where she and Rocky sat on the couch and Eric took the chair next to them.

"You're Regina's family. Her half-brother," Eric said to Rocky.  
>"Right. I'm making the medical decisions for her. My dad can't handle this at the moment," Rocky said.<br>"Well, I was wondering if you would bring the baby home with you and Meri," Eric asked.  
>They were silent for a moment. "Why us," Meredith asked.<br>"Because you both desperately want a baby and I thought you could help me learn the ropes. Tommy said you were a big help to him when he first found out about Siobhan," Eric said.  
>"I don't know what to say. You want us to take temporary custody of your child until you're able to care for her," Rocky asked.<br>"Yeah. I want to try to see her and maybe be Uncle Eric, but I'm not father material right now. I had a one-night stand with her mother and barely remembered her face," Eric said.  
>Meredith was having a war with herself. She wanted to help her friend and, since the child was technically her niece, she couldn't let anything happen to her. She knew Rocky was torn because of his father. She also knew he was trying to figure out how to help Eric.<p>

Rocky looked at his wife. She nodded her head and squeezed his hand. "OK. We'll bring her home to our house. You can come and give us a hand and we'll help you," Rocky said.  
>"Thanks! This means a lot to me," Eric said.<br>Meredith felt a relief but at the same time, she felt apprehension. She had no idea what she and Rocky were getting themselves into, especially since they were having their own child.

Eric hugged both of them and started out the door. He turned back around and asked, "I don't know what to name her. Do you have any ideas?"

"We'll think of something. We'll talk to Kimberly in the morning," Rocky said.

Eric nodded and went out the door. As Rocky locked the door behind him, Meredith could tell he was a mixture of emotions.

"It'll be fine," she said, slipping into his arms.  
>"I know. We'll figure it out together," Rocky said.<p>

Tommy read the email from Hayley and went downstairs to talk to Kim. He knew she was preoccupied with a case at the hospital and it killed him that he couldn't help her.

"Kim, I got an email from Hayley," he said, entering the kitchen.

Kim looked at him. "Hayley," she asked.  
>"Remember my lab partner from back East," he said.<br>Kimberly nodded her head. Something was tickling the back of her brain and she couldn't quite grab it.

"Oh, yeah. What did she say," Kimberly asked as she checked the roast in the oven.

"She's moving back here. She wants to open a cafe next to the dojo. At least that's what she's thinking," Tommy said.  
>"It's been a while since I've seen her. I didn't know you two still kept in touch," Kimberly said.<br>"Hayley emailed me out of the blue a few months ago and we've been going back and forth. I thought I told you about it," Tommy said. He grabbed the plates out of the cupboard and put Siobhan's food on her divided plate.

"You might have thought you did, but that's fine. I'm glad you're still friends with someone from back East. You've never talked about it much," Kimberly said, setting the roast on the stove.

"Not much to talk about. I fled California because of our break up. It was too painful. Being out there and talking to Meri over the phone got me thinking I was running away. She kept telling me she missed me and wanted me to come home. I didn't know she was trying to get me to come back because of Siobhan," Tommy said.  
>"Well, you'll have to invite Hayley over for dinner. It would be nice to see her for more than a few minutes at a time. I think I met her at Meredith and Rocky's wedding. I didn't know they were friends," Kimberly said.<p>

"They're really not, but Meri met her and she was traveling out this way, so Meri thought to include her so I'd have another familiar face in the crowd. I was scared of seeing you again," Tommy said.

"I'll get my new schedule this week, so we can compare and figure out when to invite her over," she said.

Tommy nodded his head. Kimberly chewed her food, but her mind wasn't on the food on her plate. It was on the nagging suspicion she had in her mind about Hayley. She kept trying to figure it out, but she wasn't having any luck with it.

***What's Hayley got up her sleeve? Will Regina wake up from her accident? *** -mereditholiver 


	64. Unexpected News

DISCLAIMER: See previous.

UNEXPECTED NEWS

Meredith entered the hospital, preparing to discharge Jason from her service to home and outpatient PT.

She entered the ortho unit and stopped at the nursing station to retrieve Jason's chart.

She was surprised to see a friend and fellow medical school grad, Dean Franklin, examining the chart for Jason.

"Dean, what are you doing with my patient's chart," Meredith asked.

"I was actually going to find you. Can we talk," he asked Meredith.

"Sure," she answered, following him into a vacant dictation office.

"Remember when you removed that tissue during the surgery on Mr. Scott," he asked.

"Yeah, it's standard to remove the damaged tissue. I had to regardless because of the tendon repair," Meredith said.  
>"Well, the tissue you removed was sent to pathology. There was a lymph node in the sample," Dean said.<p>

Meredith's heart dropped. Dean was an oncologist. If he was looking at Jason's chart, Jason needed him.

"He's got cancer," Meredith said, in a near whisper, unable to believe she had spoken those words in relation to her friend.

"Yes. He has Lymphoma. I don't know exactly how significant, but given he isn't reporting any symptoms based on your history of the patient, I'm certain he's treatable with the right regimen," Dean said.

"Have you told him," Meredith asked.

"No. I wanted to speak with you before I did," he said.

"Thanks. I appreciate that. Mr. Scott hasn't experienced any unusual symptoms. Nothing that would indicate Lymphoma or the need to check for it," Meredith said.

"Well, if you want to talk to him, I'll see him in the morning after his PT. I'm sorry, Meredith," Dean said.

He left a card and some information. Meredith knew Dean would explain things in more detail to Jason and Kat, but right now Meredith had to give the bad news to her best friend.

She took a deep breath and willed herself not to cry.

She picked up Jason's chart and headed into his room. She nearly started crying when she saw the smiling face of Jason, Kat and Chloe in the stroller.

"Meri, is everything ready for me to get out of here," Jason asked.

"I've finished your paperwork and set up a schedule with PT starting tomorrow," she said.

"Great. Let's get out of here," Jason said.

Jason flashed his smile at Meredith, but immediately dropped it when he saw Meredith's face. "What's the matter," he asked, able to read her.

"There's no easy way to tell you this, so I'm just coming out with it. When I repaired the tendon in your arm, I removed the damaged tissue. It's standard procedure to send the tissue removed during an operation to be sent to the lab for analysis. They like to make sure you didn't have any underlying infection and to make sure you don't get one. Anyway, the tissue I removed contained a lymph node. Pathology analyzed the specimens and found Lymphoma. Jason, you have cancer," Meredith said, believing she'd just given the hardest speech of her life.

"Cancer," Katherine said. Meredith recognized the look on her face. She knew Katherine couldn't accept what was happening.

"Yes. I spoke with a colleague I went to med school with and he wants to see you right after your PT. He believes, since you've shown no signs of being ill or anything at the moment, you should respond well to treatment. There's no reason to believe you can't beat it," Meredith said.

"Are you sure," Jason asked.

"Pathology reviewed the samples, Jase. Dean Franklin, the oncologist, has already looked over your chart. He's got a positive diagnosis and he's making arrangements for you to become his patient and treat the Lymphoma," Meredith said.

"This is unreal. I get shot and find out I have cancer. How does that work," he asked.

Meredith shrugged her shoulders. She didn't have an answer for Jason and Katherine. She didn't understand it either and would have loved to be wrong about what was happening.

"I have your paperwork and Dean dropped off some information on the treatments and what exactly you have. I'm available anytime if you have questions," Meredith said, giving the information to Katherine. "I'll leave you guys alone," she said, slipping out of the room.

Meredith rushed to the ladies' room where she promptly emptied her stomach of her breakfast. She hung her head over the sink and looked up. The worry of Jason's situation was showing on her and she couldn't believe it was happening to him. Jason had been a power ranger. Why was this disease invading his body? Meredith knew searching for answers was useless, but she still asked the question.

Jason and Katherine looked at each other. Katherine's face was red and streaked with her silent tears. Jason was just plain angry. This was yet another enemy he couldn't defeat with his muscles and skill, he had to rely on his inner strength.

"I don't understand. You haven't been ill," Katherine said.

"I feel great, but Meri says there's something there. I don't know what I'm going to do," Jason said.

"Do? You're going to fight it. That's what you're going to do," Kat said.

"I'll go to PT tomorrow and then see this Dr. Franklin Meri knows. I just can't believe this. Can't we catch a break," Jason asked.

Katherine willed herself not to cry, but she knew she'd break down when they got home.

The nurse helped Jason into a wheelchair and wheeled him out to the hall. Katherine was surprised when Meri took the handles to the wheelchair.

"Let me know if you need me to help with the medical side of things. It's not my specialty, but I understand things," Meredith said.

"Thanks, Meri. You're a great friend to the both of us," Katherine said.

"I'm off tomorrow, so I can watch Chloe if you want to go to Jason's appointment," Meredith offered.

"Thanks. I might take you up on that," Katherine said. She left Jason and Meredith at the curb while she went to retrieve the car, pushing Chloe's stroller ahead of her.

"I'm sorry, Jase," Meredith said.

He took her hand. "Don't. I'm glad you told me. I know it's real and that it's serious. I couldn't ask for a better friend. Now, what's the deal with the woman that shot me. How does she know Rocky," he asked.

"Regina Smith is Rocky's older half-sister. She was conceived while Rocky's dad was in high school with Regina's mom. They broke up before he knew about the baby and by the time he was told, he was with Rocky's mom. Regina found her father and confronted Rocky's mom. When she asked her husband about this 'child' he had a heart attack," Meredith said.

"That's what happened? Tommy told me Rocky's dad had a heart attack, but I had no idea. No wonder she looked familiar to me. She and Rocky have the same eyes. I'm sorry, Meri. For a bit there I thought he was cheating on you with her and had gotten her pregnant. I know how much you guys want a baby. Congrats by the way," Jason said.

"Oh, my pregnancy. Yeah, quite a shock," she said.

"What's going to happen to Regina's baby," Jason asked.

"Regina left a note that told everyone that Eric was the baby's father. He took a paternity test and it confirmed the note. Eric's in shock and asked Rocky and I to take the baby. Rocky's upstairs in Neo getting ready to bring his niece home. I'm meeting him after I get you out of here," Meredith said.

"You guys are going to have your hands full," Jason said.

"No more than you and Kat. You're going to make it, Jase. I know that," Meredith said.

Jason smiled at his friend, hoping to feel her optimism.

She watched Jason get into the car with Kat and they waved as they drove away. Meredith took the wheelchair back inside then went back to the ortho floor to finish her rounds and meet Rocky to bring the baby home from the hospital.

"Are you going to be OK," Jason asked his wife as they sat on the couch a few hours after returning home. Chloe had been put down for a nap and they talked for the first time without the fear of anyone overhearing them.

Katherine looked up at Jason and touched his face. It was rough from the stubble since he hadn't been able to shave this morning because of the shock of the diagnosis. "I'm going to be fine, as long as I have you and the kids," she said, her blue eyes shining with unshed tears.

Jason leaned into her palm and closed his eyes, keeping the tears away. "I'm going to be fine, as long as I have you and the kids," he said. Katherine smiled at him and they sat on the couch, holding each other, careful not to hurt Jason's arm.

When Jason felt Katherine fall into an uneasy sleep, he prayed. Jason could take anything happening, but to upset his wife and family wasn't something he was willing to accept. In that instant he made a decision: he was going to fight this enemy with just as much strength and determination as he had fought Rita and Zedd. That was a promise. He wasn't going down without a fight.

***I know, that wasn't very nice. Sorry!*** -mereditholiver


	65. Decisions

DISCLAIMER: See previous.

DECISIONS

Rocky sat on the couch in his and Meredith's apartment. He had just gotten off the phone with his father. He told his dad what had happened with Regina and that he and Meredith were going to take custody of the baby until either Regina came home or Eric felt ready to take care of her. His father thanked him for the information and said he'd go visit Regina at the hospital. Rocky promised to bring the baby to the house to meet her grandparents.

Kimberly had said she'd be ready to release the baby around 1, if Rocky and Meredith or Eric came up with a name for the baby. He and Meredith had been thinking of names, but had yet to agree on one for their niece.

Rocky got off the couch and went downstairs to the dojo. He needed to talk to Eric. He was the baby's father.  
>"Hey, Mr. DeSantos. How is everything," Callie asked.<p>

"Fine. Where's Eric," Rocky asked.

"In the back," she answered.  
>Rocky nodded his thanks and went to the back office.<br>"Eric," he called.  
>"Yeah, Rocky. I thought you were leaving to get the baby," he said. Eric had spent some time with the baby in the hospital, but still didn't feel comfortable around her.<p>

"I want you to help name your daughter," Rocky said.  
>"I hadn't thought about it," Eric said.<p>

"Well, we can't bring her home until she has a name and Meri and I can't agree on anything, so you're going to come up with something or some ideas," Rocky said.

"I've always liked Meredith's middle name," Eric said, hating to admit that to Rocky.  
>Rocky smiled. "Summer is a good name. And don't worry about that, I know you have a crush on Meri. Can't blame you," he said.<br>"Well use Summer either as a first or middle name," Eric said.  
>Rocky got up from the chair. "I'll let Meri know. We'll bring her by to see you when we get back," Rocky said, leaving the office.<br>He went out and got in his truck. He had rushed out and purchased a Volvo station wagon for Meredith to bring the baby home in and drive around with her. It made more sense than having her in Rocky's truck since there wasn't a seat for her. Meredith had purchased a seat for the Jeep, which Rocky would install later. They agreed they'd have the station wagon for primarily driving the baby around, but she could ride in Meredith's Jeep in a pinch.

He parked in the parking garage and made his way to the nursery.

"Hey, Rocky. You ready," Kimberly asked.  
>"Yeah. I've got a name," he said.<br>"What is it so I can fill out the birth certificate," she asked.  
>"Erika Summer DeSantos-Meyers. She's technically a DeSantos since her mom was my half-sister," Rocky said.<br>"That works and Eric still has his name in there. You can always change it should Eric ask you and Meri to adopt the child," Kimberly said.  
>She went over the instructions with Rocky before transferring Erika to the car seat Rocky had brought up from Meredith's car when he'd parked.<br>"Can you call Meri and see what's keeping her," Rocky asked, buckling Erika in her car seat.  
>Kimberly dialed Meredith's number. "Hey, Meri. Where are you? Rocky's ready to take the baby home," Kimberly said. "OK, see you in a few."<br>"She's coming. Apparently she had an upsetting day. She tried calling you," Kim said.  
>"Oh, I must have it off or on silent. I didn't want to disturb anyone," Rocky said.<br>Meredith walked into the nursery and kissed her husband.  
>"What's wrong, babe," he asked.<p>

"Jason," Meredith said.  
>"What about Jason? Did you send him home today," Kim asked.<br>"Yeah, but something came up in a routine pathology test. He'll probably tell you later, but he has lymphoma," Meredith said.  
>"Cancer," Rocky asked.<br>Meredith nodded her head. "Course he has a lot of things on his side. It doesn't look like it's spread, so when he sees the oncologist, Dean, in the morning, he'll have a course of action," Meredith said.  
>"I'm sorry babe," Rocky said. Meredith accepted his hug and looked at the baby.<p>

"What did you name her," Meredith asked.  
>"I talked to Eric and he suggested your middle name as either a middle or first name," Rocky said.<br>"You've saddled that child with Summer," Meredith asked, her face twisted in distaste.  
>"No, Erika Summer. Her last name is DeSantos-Meyers," he said.<br>"That's fitting. Why DeSantos-Meyers," she asked.  
>"Her mom is a DeSantos, thanks to dad and Meyers is her father's name. If we adopt her, she'll already have DeSantos so she won't have to be too confused," Rocky said.<p>

"That's a great name for her. I just hope Eric decides he can be a daddy, but I kind of like the idea of having her around us all the time," Meredith said.

"Well, let me finish this paperwork and then you can go. I'm walk out with you since I have a doctor's appointment this afternoon. Gonna find out when the next Oliver is due," Kimberly said.  
>"Thankfully, the wedding's this weekend, so you won't have to worry about that," Meredith said.<br>"Well, I'm already starting to feel huge and I'm still in the first trimester," Kimberly said.  
>"Well, you are having Tommy's kid. He's not exactly a small guy and, according to mom, he wasn't a small baby when they brought us home. He outweighed me by two pounds," Meredith said.<br>"When are you due, Meri," Kimberly asked, as she typed into the computer.

"Christmas day. How's that for a present," she said.

Rocky kissed her cheek. "Best present I could have asked for, next to you and this little one," he said.  
>"Oh, you're laying it on thick, DeSantos," Meredith said.<p>

"Here you go. All set. You have the pediatrician picked out and all that," Kimberly asked.  
>"Yeah, Rocky took care of that stuff while I was working this week. He got some recommendations and then talked to some of my friends from med school about doctors. He's been so involved it's putting me to shame," Meredith said.<br>"You've had other things to worry about. I know how you feel, though. Tommy's had to take a front and center role with Siobhan now with me working as an NP and pulling 24 hour shifts. But, he likes being able to stay home and work out in the dojo with the kids. He really enjoys that," Kim said.

The three exited the nursery, Rocky carrying the baby and Meredith had the paperwork.  
>"Well, I'll see you Sunday. Dinner with you guys, right," Meredith asked.<br>"That's what Tommy told me. I'll call you tonight after I hear from the doctor," Kimberly said.  
>"Works for me. Talk to you soon," Meredith said, waving at Kimberly in the parking garage.<p>

Meredith unlocked the door to the station wagon and Rocky snapped the car seat in the base.  
>"I'll see you in a few minutes," Meredith said.<br>"Yeah. We'll order out tonight. Eric might drop by and see Erika. He's trying to be involved," Rocky said.

"Well, we'll just have to pray that he figures out what he wants to do. Did you hear anything about Regina," Meredith asked.

"Not good. She's got an infection and the antibiotics aren't working. They're talking about putting her back on the ventilator. Dad was supposed to come by to see her at some point. I don't want to have to make any decisions for my sister's life. I may detest her and what she did to my dad, but she is my sister. Regardless of her circumstances," he said.  
>"That's why I love you, Rocky DeSantos. You never cease to amaze me," she said.<br>Rocky kissed his wife. "I thought it was my amazing body," he said.  
>"Well, if you want to get technical," she said, laughing at the expression on his face.<br>"That's what I thought," he said.  
>"You didn't let me finish. Jason's is a bit better," she said, trying to keep a straight face.<br>"Really? Well, I guess I'll have to work a bit harder. I'll see you at home," he said.

Meredith got in the car and headed for home, smiling at the teasing she and Rocky could do with each other. She loved everything about Rocky, but she liked to tease her husband.

Eric looked at his window and saw Meredith pulling into the garage behind the dojo. He had been waiting for the couple to bring the baby home, but now he was nervous about seeing her and being so close to her. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself and sat back on the couch. He had the TV on to ESPN, but he wasn't paying attention to it.

His cell phone rang and he was surprised to see the number belonged to Zack.

"Zack, what's up," Eric asked.  
>"Not much man, just wanted to see how you were doing," Zack said.<br>"Pretty good. Meredith and Rocky are bringing the baby home today, so I'll get to see her. I'm a little freaked out by it," he said.  
>"I know the feeling. Listen, Aisha and I wanted to surprise Meredith and Rocky this weekend. You know it's their anniversary, right," Zack said.<br>Eric checked the calendar. It would be Meredith and Rocky's third wedding anniversary Monday. He couldn't believe he'd forgotten.  
>"I remember now. You guys need a place to stay," he asked.<p>

"Yeah," Zack said.  
>"Well, you guys are more than welcome to use my apartment. I know it's small, but I can sleep on the couch and you and Aisha can have my room and the guest room has a double bed that the girls can use," Eric said.<br>"Thanks, man. We didn't want to put Meredith and Rocky out, especially with them bringing home the new baby," Zack said.  
>"Sounds great. I'll see you in a few days, then," Eric asked.<br>"We'll be there Thursday night. Thanks man. See ya," Zack said, hanging up the phone.

Eric felt good that he could help surprise Rocky and Meredith. He opened his front door to wait for Meredith and Rocky to enter their apartment. He had to admit, he was anxious to see the baby.

Meredith parked in the garage and got out of the car. She opened the back door and unlocked the car seat from the base and headed toward the door to go inside the building.

Rocky had added the garage so it could be attached to the building. Meredith was grateful for that when it was raining outside and now, with Erika, it would be much easier to get to the car.

Rocky pulled into the space next to her. He closed his garage door and hopped out to help Meredith.

"You know, I can carry the baby. She's not that heavy," Meredith said as Rocky took the carrier from his wife.  
>"I know, but I like pampering you," he said, kissing her quickly before opening the door for her.<p>

They rode the elevator up to their apartment. "I didn't tell you, but the plans I had to put two more apartments on the third floor went through. We'll be able to rent them out when they're finished," Rocky said.

"That's great, honey," Meredith said. She knew Rocky had wanted to add some more apartments to the building. He liked designing the spaces and Meredith was glad to indulge him.

"I've also thought about something and I know you don't want to think about it, but maybe we should buy a house or design one. This apartment is going to get pretty crowded come Christmas," Rocky said as they entered their apartment.  
>Meredith looked at Rocky. She had loved the idea of living in the dojo building, especially since Rocky had designed it, but maybe he did have a point.<br>"A house. Do you think we can have it done by Christmas," Meredith asked.  
>"Maybe, but certainly by the Spring when the space is going to get really crowded. Erika will be walking by then and our little one will start needing more space," Rocky said.<br>"Where would we build a house," she asked, knowing that land wasn't easy to come by in their city.  
>Meredith started making a bottle for Erika and Rocky took her out of her car seat. "That's not really an issue. I happen to know someone who has 25 acres just outside of town who would love nothing more than to have us living near them," Rocky said.<br>"Tommy! You seriously want to build a house near Tommy. You know I would love it, but wouldn't that drive you crazy, just a bit," Meredith said.

"I think I could handle it. Besides, I can always come back here if it gets to be too much," Rocky said, smiling at his wife.  
>Meredith punched him lightly in the shoulder. "I'm game," she said.<p>

She took the baby from Rocky and started feeding her the bottle and rocking her to sleep. Rocky watched his wife take on the mom role and discovered he loved her even more than he thought possible.

Eric knocked lightly on the door to the DeSantos' apartment. Rocky opened the door and welcomed him inside. "Meri just put her down in her crib. Come on and see her," Rocky said, leading Eric upstairs to Erika's nursery.

Eric peeked in the room and smiled. His daughter looked so peaceful sleeping in the crib and he realized that, despite loving her, he couldn't take care of her. He knew, just by seeing the care Meredith and Rocky had put in the nursery, that his daughter would be loved, just as if she were their own child. The addition of Meredith and Rocky's biological child into the family would give his daughter and instant playmate.

He and Rocky exited the room. Meredith came out of the bedroom and headed downstairs. Rocky and Eric followed after her.  
>"We named her," Rocky said.<br>"What," Eric asked.  
>Meredith looked at Rocky and said, "Erika, with a K, Summer DeSantos-Meyers."<p>

Eric's jaw dropped. "I hadn't thought of that. Wow! I'm glad you guys did that, it's a great name. But I need to talk to you about her," Eric said.  
>"Let's go in the living room," Rocky said.<br>"I've been thinking about letting you guys raise her permanently," he said.

Meredith and Rocky looked at each other. "Why," Rocky asked.  
>"Because, I've thought about it and I don't have anything in place to take care of a child. I don't even know if I want to have kids. I mean they're great, but I don't think I'm in the right place for them, right now. I know I shouldn't have slept with Regina at all without being aware of the consequences, but I was in a bad place at that time. I wasn't thinking about anyone but myself and, quite frankly, I'm still a little on the selfish side," Eric said.<br>"What do you want to do," Meredith asked. She had hoped Eric would want Erika, but after bringing Erika home with her and Rocky and the baby falling asleep in her arms, she didn't think she could let her go.

"I'll be around and I might offer to babysit, if I think I can handle her without hurting her. I want to see her grow up and I know that, since we're friends, I will be able to see her. You guys are meant to be parents. I've seen you with the kids at the dojo, with Siobhan and Jasmine. You are exactly what Erika needs. Plus, your little one will have an instant big sister and best friend," Eric said.  
>"If that's what you want, we'd be honored to raise her," Rocky said.<br>"Great. I've been talking to TJ. He's an attorney now and he said he could arrange the adoption. I talked with Regina's doctors and they told me she's gotten worse. TJ said to see what happens with her, but that the temporary custody arrangement would work for you guys to have her," Eric said. He got off the couch and headed toward the door. "I'll see you guys later. Rocky, don't worry about the dojo. I'll watch things while you get settled with Erika. Thanks, again," Eric added before leaving the apartment.

"Can you believe he did that. That was so unexpected," Meredith said.  
>"I thought he might do that. Eric has mentioned, before he knew about the baby, that he only deals with kids when they can start coming to the dojo. I get the feeling his family life wasn't as nice as mine growing up with siblings," Rocky said.<p>

"Still, to give up your child," Meredith said.  
>"Hey, Eric realizes he can't do it. Maybe this is what he needed to grow up, but Erika is going to have him in her life. We'll tell her about her 'uncle' Eric and that she's named after him. He'll be around and be a part of her life, just like Tommy, Jason, Zack, Adam and Billy," Rocky said.<br>"OK. I just can't believe this whole thing. In less than a year, we'll be the parents of two little ones. I hope I can handle it," Meredith said.  
>"You agreed when I said I wanted a whole house full," Rocky said, laughing.<br>"Yeah, but not that close. Now watch. This little one will be twins and we'll double our pleasure at one time," Meredith said.  
>"You said it, babe," Rocky said, kissing his wife.<p>

They heard a quiet cry from the baby monitor and Rocky got up to retrieve their daughter. It felt really good to say that for the first time. He couldn't wait for him and Meredith to welcome their biological child in a few months.

He just hoped Erika would cooperate when Tommy and Kimberly got married that weekend.

***So, Meredith and Rocky are going to raise Eric's child. But we're not done with him. Jason's visit to the oncologist is next where he and Katherine get news regarding his condition.*** -mereditholiver


	66. Extra! Extra!

DISCLAIMER: See previous

EXTRA! EXTRA!

Hayley looked around the building. She liked the location and, through some gentle inquiries, discovered that not only did Tommy's sister and brother-in-law own the building the housed the dojo, they had invested in this building as well.

She decided that connection was enough to rent the entire building for a year. She wanted them to think she was serious about opening the cybercafe. The proximity to the dojo would allow her another way to get to Tommy.

She was taking pictures with her camera when Tommy came by the building.

"Hayley! I was surprised you were here so quickly. I thought you'd be out a bit later than this," Tommy said.  
>They shared a hug and, too soon for Hayley, it was over.<p>

"Well, I couldn't miss your wedding, now could I," she said.

"True. I can't wait for you to meet the rest of my friends. They're a rowdy bunch," Tommy said.

"I'm looking forward to it. I have a gift for Kimberly that I'd like to give to her," Hayley said.  
>"I can take it home with me," Tommy offered.<p>

"No because you might peek. This is 'special' gift that you can't see right now," Hayley said.  
>"OK. Well, how about coming over for dinner tonight? You can meet my daughter, Siobhan," Tommy said.<br>"I would love that. I'll see you around 6," Hayley said.  
>"Sounds great. I'm heading to the dojo. I'm teaching a class for Rocky," Tommy said, waving at Hayley as he exited the building.<p>

Hayley couldn't believe her luck. She was going to get to spend the evening with Tommy. This would give her access to Kimberly and help her figure out a way to get her out of the way so she and Tommy could be together.

Tommy entered the dojo and headed back to the locker room for the employees. He changed into his karate gi and stowed the rest of his stuff in the locker.

He was surprised to see Eric at the dojo when he exited the locker room.  
>"Eric, what are you doing here, man," Tommy asked, shaking Eric's hand.<br>"I'm working for Rocky while he and Meri get settled in with the baby," Eric said.  
>"So you're letting Meri and Rocky take care of her," Tommy asked.<br>"I'm not in a good place to raise her. Rocky and Meri are going to care for her and adopt her later, if Regina doesn't recover. She's getting worse from the pneumonia and infection from the procedure they did to take her off the ventilator. Meri and Rocky are perfect for taking care of her. I can see her when I want, though," Eric said.

Tommy nodded. He understood. Eric's life since he'd left the rangers hadn't been easy. He was the one that had the most difficulty adapting to life without being a ranger. It was hard for Tommy to see, but he knew Rocky had developed a friendship with Eric and Meredith considered Eric a friend.

Tommy went to join his class. This was something he really enjoyed. Teaching martial arts to the kids. He envied Rocky because he'd gone against what everyone else did and did what he wanted. His dojo was a success and he and Meredith were happy.

Hayley stood off in the corner, watching Tommy teaching the children. She smiled to herself. She was going to get the former ranger, after she got the pink ranger out of the way. She just had to figure out how to do it. She'd been careless before and left Kimberly unguarded. She hadn't counted on the amount of ranger support Kimberly would have. Hayley was going to have to call on all her buried evil ability to get Tommy for herself.

On his astral plane, Zordon saw Hayley plotting to destroy Kimberly. His pink crane, above all the rangers, was special to him. He sent for Dimitria.

"Yes, Zordon," she asked.  
>"I have to return to Earth. If we are to save this world from another powerful evil, Kimberly and Tommy must not be destroyed. Hayley is going to do that if we don't put a stop to it," Zordon said.<p>

"If you return to Earth in a solid state, you will be unable to return to this plane. You will cease to exist," Dimitria reminded him.

"To save humanity; to save my rangers, I'm willing to make that sacrifice. It's not the first time I have put myself on the line for them," Zordon said.  
>"If you are certain, I will return you to Earth," she said.<p>

Soon, Zordon was back on Earth in a body. A body he hadn't seen in several millennium. He wasn't sure how he was going to explain this but he knew he had to save the rangers from their fates.

Jason exited his PT appointment. Katherine was meeting him at the oncologist office after dropping Chloe with Meredith. They hadn't told their parents about his diagnosis and explaining why they needed a sitter was something he wasn't ready to get into at the moment.

He had just walked across the street, Rocky having picked him up and dropping him off at PT. He didn't know why Rocky had shown up that morning, but he sensed Meredith knew Kat would need to talk to her before the appointment. The fact that Meredith read everyone so well was testament to the fact they had all been friends for years. They could all tell each others moods without too much difficulty.

Jason saw Katherine walking toward him. She grabbed his hand that wasn't in the sling and they headed into the office together. Jason noticed Katherine appeared better than she had when he'd left her two hours ago and wondered what happened while he had been gone.

They entered the office and Jason went to the front desk.

"Good morning. Your name, please," the receptionist asked.

"Jason Scott. I have an appointment with Dr. Franklin," Jason said.  
>"Oh, yes. You're Dr. DeSantos' patient. Have a seat. They'll take you back shortly," she said, handing Jason a clipboard.<p>

He handed the clipboard to Katherine because he couldn't fill it out that well with his arm in a sling.

"Looks like most of this is already done. Must have gotten it from your hospital paperwork. You only have to sign and full out the insurance information," Katherine said, filling out the fields on the form and handing it to Jason to sign as best he could.

They were called back within minutes and headed to the exam room.

Dr. Franklin followed them into the room.

"Hi Mr. Scott, Mrs. Scott. I hate that we're meeting like this. I'm Dr. Franklin, but you can call me Dean," he said, sitting down in the other chair in the room.

He opened his chart for Jason and flipped through a few pages before looking at Jason.

"You know you have cancer. Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma to be exact. However, you're in Stage I. Very early, not advanced. That's the good news. The even better news is that we can cure this," Dean said.  
>"Cure it," Jason asked, unable to believe what he was hearing.<br>"Yes. It's not advanced. You should thank Dr. DeSantos. She did a wonderful job making sure she cleaned all that tissue out of the wound and surrounding area so she could have a good place to do the tendon reconstruction. She captured several Lymph nodes that were adjacent to each other and only one in that cluster showed the signs of cancer," Dean said.  
>"So Jason's going to be OK," Katherine said, not believing how this appointment was going.<p>

"I believe he's going to be just fine. We'll do a bone marrow biopsy to make sure his marrow isn't affected, do a round of chemo and, if he wants, we'll do a bone marrow transplant as an extra incentive to guard against the cancer returning. Now, there are no guarantees, but, with a history like yours, Jason, there's no reason to believe you won't recover fully without any lasting effects," Dean said.  
>"When do we do the biopsy," he asked.<p>

"As soon as you want to do it. I know you have a painful injury with your arm, so if you'd like to wait until that's healed, we can do that," Dean said.  
>"No, I don't want to wait. Can you do it sooner," Jason asked.<br>"I can probably do it Friday. Does that work for you," Dean asked.  
>"That's great. Would it be possible for Dr. DeSantos to be around during the procedure," Jason asked.<br>"I don't see why not, but I'll have to ask her. I'm not sure she'd want to be there for your procedure," Dean said.  
>"Meredith will want to be there. She and Jason are high school classmates. They've been friends for years and I know Jason and I would feel better having her around for the procedure," Katherine said.<br>"Well, I had no idea you were that close to Dr. DeSantos. We'll get you a time and you can ask her to join us," Dean said.  
>"Thank you, sir," Jason said, still not believing what he'd heard.<p>

Dean excused himself from the room and headed to find his nurse. They checked his schedule and set Jason's biopsy for that Friday at 10 am. The nurse went to the room and gave Jason his list of instructions. They thanked the doctor and nurse and left the office.  
>They got in Katherine's car and headed to Meredith and Rocky's.<p>

"Can you believe what he said," Katherine asked.  
>"No. I was fully prepared to have him tell me I was going to be dead in the next year," Jason said.<br>"Looks like you're stuck with me for a lot longer than that," Katherine said, trying to sound light in her tone.

"Forever, kitten," he said.  
>Katherine smiled at his use of her nickname. She had always hated to be called kitten until Jason had said it for the first time. She often said it was like Meredith liking Rocky calling her babe when most would hate it.<br>She pulled into the parking lot and they got out of the car and headed inside. They climbed the stairs to the apartment and knocked on the door.  
>Rocky answered holding a sleeping, Chloe. Jason smiled at the sight.<br>"How are things," Jason asked. Katherine took her sleeping daughter from Rocky and went to sit next to Meredith on the couch. Meredith was feeding Erika who was on her way to sleep.

"Couldn't be better. Chloe is such an angel," Rocky said.

Katherine smiled. "She is a good baby. I such an easy pregnancy with her that I was surprised when I got morning sickness with this one," Katherine said.  
>"When are you due, Kat," Meredith asked, handing the sleeping Erika to Rocky to put in her crib.<p>

"Halloween. Isn't that funny," she said.  
>Meredith looked at Katherine. Katherine was having her second child and was due two months before Meredith, yet Meredith was already huge.<p>

"Wow. I'm twice your size already," Meredith said.

"Maybe you're dates are wrong," Katherine said.

"Don't think so. We were forbidden to do anything without protection by our doctor for six weeks. We slipped up ONCE, and that's when I got pregnant. I was supposed to have a procedure done, but Rocky went missing so I missed it. Before that Rocky was in and out of town and I was working 24 hour shifts at the hospital. We couldn't have gotten pregnant except that one day," Meredith said.  
>"I really don't need to hear this," Jason said, his face getting red.<br>"I don't think you do either. I don't like sharing," Rocky said.

"I'm just trying to figure out why I'm so much bigger than Kat," Meredith said.  
>"Everything is fine and I'm sure the doctor will confirm it tomorrow," Rocky said.<br>"Do you need us to watch Erika," Katherine asked.  
>"Actually, Eric volunteered to watch her for us so we could go to the appointment. He wants to make an effort to be involved, even if he's not raising her," Meredith said.<br>"Good for him," Jason said.  
>"So what did Dean say," Meredith asked.<p>

"Jason's cancer is stage I and can be cured. He's having a biopsy Friday and we want you there," Katherine said.  
>"Of course. Friday's my day off so I can be there. Is that OK, Rocky," Meredith asked.<br>"Of course. I can watch Erika," Rocky said.  
>"What time," Meredith asked.<br>"10. Thank you, Meri," Jason said.  
>"You'd do the same for any of us," Meredith said.<p>

Jason gathered Chloe's diaper bag and watched Katherine put the baby in her car seat. They waved at the DeSantos family and headed for the car.

Rocky kissed the side of Meredith's head as they watched Jason and Katherine drive away.

***Hayley's going to Tommy's! What will she do to our beloved pink crane?***


	67. Guess Who's Coming To Dinner

DISCLAIMER: See previous. Nothing has changed.

GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER

Hayley stood at Tommy and Kimberly's door. She couldn't believe she was actually here. She only hoped the little ruse she'd set up for Kimberly would get her out of the way and give Hayley a chance with Tommy.

Hayley rang the doorbell and was surprised when Meredith answered the door.

"Hayley! It's great to see you," Meredith said, opening the door wider to allow Hayley entrance.  
>"It's great to see you, too! How are you," Hayley asked.<br>"Pregnant and feeling huge," Meredith said "Tommy and Kim are in the kitchen. I was just putting Erika down to sleep."  
>"Erika," Hayley asked.<br>"It's a long story. Go in and see Tommy. I know he and Kim want to ask you about the wedding since they found out you were going to be here," Meredith said.

Hayley went into the kitchen and found Tommy and Kimberly kissing in front of the stove.  
>"Hey," she said, trying not to lose the food she had on her stomach already.<p>

"Hey, Hayley," Tommy said, rushing to give her a hug.

Hayley returned the hug and was disappointed when they broke apart.  
>"Hayley! It's great to get to talk to you for more than a few minutes at a time," Kimberly said.<p>

"I'm so glad I've been able to come home. I'm having such fun planning the cybercafe. I can't wait for your wedding this weekend. I can't believe Tommy's finally getting married," Hayley said, hoping her enthusiasm sounded real.

The three stood in the kitchen talking while Meredith hung back, just in the living room. Rocky came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"What's up? Why aren't you in there," he whispered in her ear. He knew she was standing there for a reason and he didn't want to call attention to her.  
>Meredith took his hand and dragged him to the stairs and up to one of the bedrooms.<br>Rocky raised his eyebrows at his wife. "Babe..."

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Rocko. There's something about Hayley that's rubbing me the wrong way," she said.  
>"What? You think she still wants Tommy? She just said she couldn't believe he was getting married," Rocky said.<br>"There's something weird about her. I never liked her; never trusted her," Meredith said.  
>"You're overreacting and are being overly sensitive. Tommy's an adult and he loves Kim. I don't think you have anything to worry about," Rocky said, kissing his wife and taking her hand. He led them back downstairs and Rocky made a point of announcing their entrance into the dining room.<p>

"You must be Hayley. I'm Tommy's brother-in-law, Meredith's husband, Rocky. You rented the building from us," Rocky said, shaking Hayley's hand.  
>"Right. I thought the name was familiar when I signed the lease. I should have known DeSantos. Tommy spoke about you having married his sister. It's nice to meet you," Hayley said.<br>The couples sat at the table and Hayley relayed stories about Tommy from his brief semester at college. They were halfway through dinner when Kimberly's pager went off.

"That's odd. I'm not supposed to be on call tonight. I'll be right back," Kimberly said, getting out of the chair.

Seeing Hayley's look, Tommy said, "Kim recently got her nurse practitioner license. She works in the Neonatal ICU at the hospital."  
>"Oh, wow. When you mentioned her I never knew she was in the medical field," Hayley said, taking a bite of her potatoes.<p>

"She was studying nursing when I left here," Tommy said, trying not to discuss that painful time in his life.

"So you have a daughter. When you mentioned you had child I had no idea you and Kimberly had a child together," Hayley said.  
>"Siobhan is a joy and her arrival was a surprise for both Kim and I, but I wouldn't change it. I'm so glad we're getting married this weekend," Tommy said.<br>Rocky and Meredith ate their dinner, cut completely out of the conversations.

"Well, I'm surprised you and Kim got back together. I mean, considering how things ended with you and then there was the girl you were seeing when you came out East," Hayley said.  
>Meredith nearly choked on her food and Rocky immediately patted her on the back.<br>"I wasn't seeing anyone in college, Hayley," Tommy said, alarmed that Hayley would say something like that.  
>"Oh, you weren't seeing that Jenn chick? My mistake. She was always around you when we weren't working on something. I guess I just assumed. You know, she got pregnant not long after you left. I thought you were going to tell me that Siobhan was Jenn's child. When you told me you and Kim were getting married, well, I didn't know what to think," Hayley said.<p>

Rocky looked at his brother-in-law. Anyone that didn't know Tommy as well, would have missed the subtle eye widening he had done before correcting it by picking up his glass of water. Suddenly, Rocky realized Tommy had a big secret he was keeping, not only from Kimberly but also from Meredith and he needed to talk to Tommy about it as soon as possible.

"Oh, look at the time, I should get going," Hayley said, getting out of the chair and getting her coat from the couch.  
>"So soon," Meredith asked.<br>"It's an hour drive back to my place. I haven't gotten anything in town, so I'm at my parent's old place. It's kind of like this place, out in the woods and such. Tommy, I'll call you tomorrow and we can do lunch or something," she said, heading out the door.

Meredith stared at the door and looked back at her brother. "What the hell was that all about," she asked.  
>Tommy shrugged his shoulders and was about to speak when Kimberly came down the stairs.<br>"Mix up, but it took me 30 minutes to fix it. Where's Hayley," Kim asked.  
>"She had to rush off. She said she had a long drive back to her parent's place," Meredith said.<p>

"Oh, well, I guess I should start the dishes. Sorry I didn't get to talk to her more. There's something about her that seemed so familiar to me," Kim said, heading for the kitchen.  
>"Kim, why don't you let Tommy and I do those dishes. You cooked a wonderful meal and you and Meri should relax for awhile," Rocky said, leading Meredith to the couch. He kissed her before turning to Tommy.<br>Tommy looked at Rocky like he'd grown three heads. "That would be great guys," Kimberly said, putting her feet on the table.

Meredith looked at Rocky. He did the dishes and such at home for her on occasion, but she knew Tommy wasn't into domestic chores and wondered why Rocky would drag Tommy into the kitchen, away from them. Rocky rolled his eyes slightly and Meredith got his subtle code. He wanted to talk to Tommy.

She put her feet up on the table and smiled.  
>Rocky took Tommy by the shoulders and dragged him into the kitchen. He heard Kimberly turn on the TV and heard her and Meredith cheer because their favorite show was on television.<p>

When he was sure the women couldn't hear them, Rocky turned to Tommy. "What the hell," he asked him.

"Careful Rocky. You are in my house," Tommy said.  
>"You dated another girl when you were out East? Another girl that, according to Hayley, was pregnant when you left? Of course, you can't believe everything Hayley says because she's got the hots for you and would do and say anything to get you to leave Kimberly," Rocky said, handing Tommy a towel.<br>"I don't know what Hayley's talking about," Tommy said, drying the dishes.

"Bullshit. I saw the look on your face. If Meredith hadn't been staring at Hayley, she would have seen it, too. Come on, fearless leader, what the hell happened," Rocky said.  
>Tommy tossed the towel on the counter. "I don't know. I went to a party with Hayley to let off some steam. I don't know what happened. I woke up in Hayley's house on her couch. She said she brought me back to her house because it was closer. She said I passed out on her couch and she left me there," Tommy said.<br>"You blacked out? Were you that messed up because of Kim," Rocky asked.  
>"I went out East to try to forget her. Jenn looks just like Kimberly except Jenn has blonde hair. She was a gymnast and cheerleader, everything Kim was in college. I might have been confused. I don't know what the hell happened, but, since no one mentioned anything to me, I kind of forgot about it," Tommy said.<p>

"You forgot? You have no idea if you slept with Jenn or not? You're truly an idiot, you know that," Rocky said.

"Hey! Even if I slept with her, she couldn't have gotten pregnant," Tommy said.  
>Rocky rolled his eyes at Tommy. "Meri and I didn't have sex for six weeks and the ONE time we did, she gets pregnant," Rocky said.<br>"I didn't need to hear about your sex life with my sister," Tommy said, cringing.  
>"All I'm saying is that nothing is guaranteed. What if you did sleep with Jenn," Rocky said.<br>"Kim would forgive me for that because we weren't together at that time," Tommy said.  
>"Of course she would, but another Oliver running around that wasn't her child with you isn't something she's about to forgive. Especially if you give her that lame-ass excuse 'I didn't know I slept with her.' I would kick your ass for that one," Rocky said.<br>Tommy flopped in the chair. "What do you suggest I do then, Rocky? You kept your sister a secret from Meredith and then I had to listen to you wonder how Meredith could think you cheated and her saying she couldn't believe she could think you would cheat but wondering why you never told her about Regina. What, exactly, can I do about it," Tommy said.  
>"Talk to Hayley, but don't do it alone," Rocky said.<br>"Hayley can't do anything to me," Tommy said, nearly laughing at the suggestion.  
>"Don't be too sure. There's something oddly familiar about the woman and I don't know what. I've never met or even seen her before and, yet, it's like I know her from somewhere," Rocky said.<p>

"Talk to her tomorrow. I imagine she'll be at the space she's rented getting it ready to open her cafe. Talk to her tomorrow, but make sure you tell me or Eric when you're going. Better yet, take one of us with you," Rocky said.  
>"Fine, but I think my sister's overreacting is wearing off on you. I think you're jumping to conclusions," Tommy said.<p>

The guys finished cleaning the kitchen while Meredith and Kimberly talked about the night and the guys in the kitchen.

***Kim and Meredith's convo is next! Will Kimberly figure out that feeling she's having? Will Rocky figure out why Hayley's so familiar? Is Hayley's plan involve Jenn and this 'mystery baby?'*** -mereditholiver


	68. It's All Coming Together Now

DISCLAIMER: See previous

IT'S ALL COMING TOGETHER

There was something about Hayley that was troubling Kimberly. She had spoken with Hayley a few times, but had never met her face-to-face. Kimberly believed that Hayley wanted Tommy for herself, but she couldn't prove that. She supposed because of how much she wanted Tommy, she assumed that everyone else wanted him as much as she did.

Tommy was off teaching a class at the dojo and Kimberly was relaxing. Siobhan was with Kimberly's mom and step-father. They had come back to the States from France for the wedding. It was hard for Kimberly to believe that she would be married, finally, to Tommy in a few days. She couldn't wait to see Meredith and Rocky's reaction when they saw the surprise party the group was planning. Meredith and Rocky believed it was just Tommy and Kimberly's wedding rehearsal. Kimberly had spent weeks planning with Aisha and Adam the perfect surprise for the DeSantos' anniversary. Kimberly and Tommy would be married the next day and that would be Kimberly's celebration and party.

However, she couldn't get the feeling that she knew something about Hayley, but couldn't put her finger on what. She picked up the phone and called Rocky. She wondered if he would have the same thought that she did regarding the familiar feeling she got around Hayley.  
>"This is Rocky," he answered.<br>"Do you always answer the phone that way," Kimberly asked.  
>"Hey, Kim. Didn't recognize the number. I got a new phone and haven't programmed the numbers into it. What's up? Something wrong," Rocky asked. Kimberly smiled.<p>

"No, I was just wondering if you got a familiar feeling from Hayley last night," Kim asked.  
>"Well, now that you mentioned it. Yeah. Meri told me it was because we might have met when we went out to visit Tommy. Although, I don't remember meeting Hayley ever. I know she and Meredith were friends or at least exchanged emails," Rocky said.<br>"She seems so familiar to me, too, but I can't figure it out. I know I've never met her in person, but I have spoken with her on the phone," Kimberly said.

"I don't know. I mean, Meri's explanation makes sense, but I get that it's more than that. I can't quite figure it out, though," Rocky said.

"I can't either. I mentioned something to Aisha in an email and she said I was being paranoid and thought everyone wanted Tommy. Maybe it isn't anything, but I can't get her out of my head. If you think of something, call me, OK," she asked.

"You got it. You ready for the big day," Rocky asked.  
>"Can't wait. Wow, we'll getting married close to when you and Meri did. Tommy must have done that on purpose," Kimberly said.<br>"Well, you know how forgetful Tommy is and this makes it easier on him. At least that's what Meri's been telling me," Rocky said with a laugh.

"That's probably a good thing. I'll talk to you later. See you at the rehearsal," Kimberly said before exchanging good-byes. 

Kimberly stretched out on the couch with a book and started reading.

An hour later, Tommy was still teaching his class, Kimberly was asleep on the couch. She didn't know someone had entered her house and was preparing to cast a spell and send her back to the dark dimension. This time, they swore they wouldn't fail.

"Not again," Kimberly said when she awoke and realized she was in the dark dimension, or something that looked like the dark dimension.

"This is getting really, really old. And you know, you would think after 20 years, the decor could have changed or at least been cleaned," Kimberly said, using her usual wit to take away the fear.

Suddenly Hayley appeared in the room with Kimberly.

"What's the matter, Kimmy? Not good enough for you? Too good for the rest of us," Hayley asked.  
>"You! I knew there was something about you that was familiar. You're the one who kidnapped me and left my daughter alone in her crib. I can't believe someone who claims to be a friend of Tommy's would do that," Kimberly said.<p>

"Oh, come now. You yourself know how desirable Tommy is and how every woman wants him. I, personally, thought he was amazing when mom first recruited him as the green ranger. I always thought he and I could have something wonderful. Something purely evil," she said.

"If you've known Tommy since he was the green ranger, why the hell haven't we ever heard of you before," Kimberly asked.  
>"Oh, Kimmy, you have," Hayley said before revealing a laugh that Kimberly thought had long been forgotten. A laugh that turned her blood cold just as Tommy's laugh when he was the evil green ranger.<p>

Rocky was mulling over Kimberly's question regarding Hayley. He was certain he'd never met Hayley, despite his wife's assurances that they had. He knew he was supposed to meet Hayley that day when they'd traveled to see Tommy during Spring Break. Rocky had gotten an awful migraine that day and Tommy and Hayley had met Meredith in the lobby for a while, before Meredith returned to the room to take care of him. He'd recovered by that evening and they'd met Tommy for dinner. Hayley was supposed to join them, but she'd had an emergency and hadn't made it.

Rocky went into the living room. Meredith had been looking over the plans he'd drawn up for their house and watching Erika snoozing in her swing.

"Babe, remember when we went to see Tommy for Spring Break and I got that awful..." Rocky started.

"Headache and you stayed in bed. We met Tommy for dinner but Hayley wasn't able to make it. Oh, yeah. So you didn't meet Hayley. But what does that have to do with anything," Meredith asked.  
>Rocky sat next to her on the couch. "You said my familiarity with her was because of that trip. I have no idea why I would know her from somewhere," he said.<p>

"I don't know how you would know her. That's really odd," Meredith said, leaning back on the couch.

Rocky started pacing around the living room. Meredith recognized it as his way of working things out. Much like Tommy worked on katas, Rocky paced and practiced his karate moves while thinking. She watched him grab his bag by the door and head out. He didn't say goodbye or tell Meredith where he was going, but she knew what was on his mind. He needed to figure it out and Meredith was going to let him.

An hour later, Rocky was working on his high kicks with the heavy bag when he suddenly stopped mid kick.

He raced back upstairs and unlocked his apartment door.

He peeked into the living room and saw Meredith was still on the couch. Erika looked to be upstairs in her crib.  
>"I got it, babe! I know exactly why Hayley is familiar," Rocky said.<br>Meredith looked at her husband. 

"Scorpina," Rocky and Kimberly said at the same time in their different locations.

***Dum, dah, dah, dum! Well, now that we know that, where's the real Hayley?***


	69. Unexpected Arrival

DISCLAIMER: See previous

UNEXPECTED ARRIVAL

Meredith looked at her husband. "Scorpina! Really, Rocky, did you hit your head or something," she asked him.  
>"Babe, listen to me. I know what I'm talking about. There was something familiar about Hayley and I remembered something from my kidnapping. When I talked to her there was something in the back of my mind but I couldn't figure it out. I was working out when I realized what it was. The voice I heard was Scorpina and Hayley carries herself just like her. Tell me you can see it," Rocky asked his wife.<br>Meredith got off the couch and started pacing. She started thinking about Hayley and if there was a similarity between the two. Slowly, the realization Rocky had come to, came to her. She faced her husband. "Oh, my God, Rocky. You're absolutely right. Why didn't I see it earlier," she said.  
>"We weren't looking for it," he said.<br>"We have to get to Tommy and Kimberly," Meredith said, rushing to her cell phone. "Tommy's class ended just as I went downstairs. He should be home by now. Kim's mom has Siobhan," Rocky said.

Just as Meredith was about to call Tommy, her phone rang. "It's Tommy. Hey, bro, what's... WHAT? Whoa, what? Calm down. OK. We'll be right there," Meredith said before turning to her husband.  
>Rocky grabbed Meredith's hand and they headed out the door. He didn't have to ask what was happening. He knew Meredith well enough to read her mind.<p>

"What do you want with me," Kimberly asked. She was beyond pissed that the witch Scorpina had returned. She always suspected that Scorpina was the spawn of Rita and Zedd, but had kept those thoughts to herself. Now, it seems she was right.

"I want you out of the way so I can have what was promised to me," she said.

Kimberly stared at Scorpina/Hayley before realizing what she meant.

"You want Tommy," Kimberly said.  
>"Right in one. Wow, you're not the dumb Valley girl everyone thinks. Tommy was promised to me by my mother and I'm not going to let some goody-two-shoes ruin that for me," ScorpinaHayley laughed.

"Why are you stalking me? Why not just go after Tommy," Kimberly asked.  
>"Because, it was much nicer to play with your head and get you all freaked out. Psychological stuff is much more painful than the physical, don't you think," she asked.<br>"You tried to get Tommy and he turned you down," Kimberly said.  
>"Tommy and I were together while he was the green ranger. Not in the 'biblical sense' but we were together. The he became good and he wasn't interested in me. So, I waited. I saw him become friends with Hayley and decided to send her to an alternative dimension and I would assume her place. Fairly simple plan, really," ScorpinaHayley said.  
>Kimberly's stomach churned. She couldn't believe Scorpina was back and trying to enact her revenge. Kimberly had been totally clueless regarding Tommy's previous relationship with Scorpina. However, dwelling on what Tommy had or hadn't done before they became a couple wasn't going to help her in this situation. She had to keep a cool head or she wouldn't make it. She had to get out of here because she was marrying Tommy in a few days and having his baby fairly soon after that. She wasn't going to give Scorpina the satisfaction. Not this time.<p>

"You want Tommy? Take him," Kimberly said.  
>ScorpinaHayley turned around and stared at the brunette. "Funny. Won't work. Tommy has to come to me willingly, not because you tell him to or anything. If I could have had my mom cast a spell to make him love me, I would have. That stupid love potion monster fouled THAT up," Scorpina/Hayley said.

Kimberly remembered that monster easily. She had been sprayed and had fallen in love with the first person she set eyes upon, Skull. The fact that Tommy had worked so hard to get 'his' Kimberly back had meant the world to her. They often laughed about it with their friends. Aisha had been chased by Bulk and Rocky and Meredith... Kimberly shook her head. That was definitely a story for reminiscing, but now was not the time.

She locked her brown eyes onto Scorpina/Hayley and stared. She didn't know what she was going to do, but she had to think and get back to Tommy.

Meredith rushed through Tommy's door, finding her brother on the couch surrounded by Jason and Billy.

"What the hell happened," Rocky asked.

"Someone took Kimberly," Jason answered for Tommy.

"I know that somebody," Rocky said.  
>The three men looked at him. "Scorpina," he said.<br>"You're crazy, Rocky. Kimberly knows Scorpina and she would stay as far from her as possible. No way," Tommy said.  
>"Tommy, listen to Rocky. He's right," Meredith said.<br>"You're both nuts," Jason said.  
>"Listen to me. That 'Hayley' that's been here? She's Scorpina. She's Zedd and Rita's daughter," Rocky said.<br>"Hayley is not Scorpina," Tommy said, not believing what Rocky and Meredith were saying.

"Bro, there's something really off about Hayley. Can't you see it? Think. I know this isn't easy, but we'll get Kimberly back," Meredith said.

Tommy started pacing. He needed to think about the crazy thought his sister and brother-in-law had placed in his head.

"What makes you think it's Scorpina in disguise," Jason asked.  
>"There was something awfully familiar about that woman. Meredith thought it was because we met that time we went out to see Tommy for break. I didn't go to the dinner that night. I had a horrible back and headache from the flight and I stayed in bed. I didn't get to meet her the rest of the trip because she was working. I knew there was something familiar about her and while I was working out it hit me. Kimberly thought something was off about her, too. She called me a few hours ago to ask if I thought I knew why Hayley seemed familiar. Kimberly has to know it's Scorpina," Rocky said.<p>

"Why would she want to kidnap Rocky or Kimberly," Jason asked Tommy.  
>"Because of what Rita promised her," Tommy said, his gaze distant.<br>Meredith recognized the gaze. Tommy only got that look when reliving his evil green ranger days. The things he did still affected him to this day and Meredith had always hated the well of emotions those memories provoked for him and for her.

"That Tommy would be hers and they would rule together," Meredith said in a near whisper.

Tommy slowly nodded his head.

"But Scorpina was around before Rita and Zedd got married," Jason said.

"Time. Rita and Zedd turned back time. They married, had a child and sent it back to rule with Rita. That's why it was so easy for Zedd to marry Rita. He'd already done it," Billy said.  
>"Yeah. Rita and Zedd had a daughter and sent her back. Rita was ruling alone and Zedd felt she needed help. They agreed to send their daughter with her back in time to help her. The plan was to allow her to rule with the green ranger when Rita found someone she deemed worthy," Tommy started.<p>

"When she found you, it was simply a matter of you and Scorpina being evil together," Meredith said.

Tommy nodded his head. "Yes. I wasn't aware of anything during that time. It's all flashes and jumbles, especially after all these years. I do know Scorpina played a vital role in my ascent as green ranger. I just don't understand why she would do such a thing if I never gave her the notion I wanted to be with her," Tommy said.  
>"You didn't have to. Rita promised her. She is Rita's daughter. She's probably used to getting what she wants," Jason said, understanding what had happened to his best friend.<p>

"OK, so we have to figure out how to get Kimberly. And figure out what Scorpina/Hayley was thinking of mentioning that girl you went to college with, Tommy," Rocky said.  
>All eyes were on Rocky and Tommy. Tommy's face, already stark white because of the situation with Kimberly, went a shade whiter.<p>

"What girl from college," Meredith asked.

"Jenn. A friend from back East," Tommy answered.

"And? Come on, Thomas Michael, I know there is something else so you should just spill it," Meredith said, crossing her arms for effect.  
>"Jenn had a baby," Tommy said.<br>Tommy's eyes bore into his sister's and her eyes widened in shock. "And it might be yours," she said, her voice a squeak.

Tommy just nodded his head. The look on Meredith's face crushed him. He saw disappointment and anger. Disappointment that he'd been so careless and naïve and anger because he hadn't told her before now. Her own husband knew before she did. That wouldn't sit well with the person who knew him better than he knew himself.

"I'm sorry, Meri. I don't remember what happened the night of that party. Jenn never came to me about her baby and it never dawned on me that it was mine," Tommy said.

"Don't you think you should find out," Meredith said when she found her voice.  
>"One thing at a time, sis. I have to get Kimberly back. For me, for Siobhan, for our new baby. I have to get my family back, Meri. I'll deal with the rest once Kimberly is back where she belongs," Tommy said.<br>Meredith nodded, knowing Tommy would do what he had to to get Kimberly back. She just couldn't believe his carelessness. Tommy was going to have a serious talk with her when this was all over.

"Any ideas," Tommy said, asking Billy.

"She's probably on the moon. But you have to believe she's going to have fortified that place better than last time," Billy said.  
>"So we can't just waltz in there and take Kim away," Jason said.<br>Billy shook his head. "We have to defeat, not only Scorpina's evil, but the woman scorned," he said.  
>"She's been nursing that grudge for years. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned is a serious understatement," Meredith said.<p>

"So how are we going to get Kimberly back," Tommy asked.  
>Just then a strong wind came through the halls of Tommy's lair. It caught the former rangers off guard and they turned, waiting for the ambush. They saw one lone figure walking through the portal.<br>The figure, head down, slowly raised his head to look at the former rangers gathered in the underground room.

"I'm going to help you," the voice said.

Meredith let out an audible gasp and grabbed Rocky. Tommy, Jason and Billy rubbed their eyes, unable to believe what they thought they were seeing.  
>"Zo...Zordon," Billy said. The figure smiled.<br>"Yes rangers. It is me," Zordon said.


	70. How Is This Possible?

DISCLAIMER: See previous.

HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?

Meredith stared at her former mentor, unable to believe what was happening.

"Zordon? How is this possible," Billy asked. He seemed to be the only ranger that had recovered his power of speech.

"I will tell you all you need to know," Zordon said.  
>He walked to Tommy and placed a hand on his shoulder.<p>

"We will get her back. Do not worry, Tommy. Kimberly will be back with you so you can get married and celebrate the birth of your second child together," Zordon told Tommy.

"How do we find her? She's been kidnapped by Scorpina who has some twisted fantasy about Tommy," Meredith said.  
>"I will provide you with the light you need to defeat Scorpina and send her back to her own time and her own dimension. I knew Rita and Zedd were up to no good, but I had no idea this was the plan. Understand this Rangers, Scorpina would not have done anything to Kimberly without some prodding from her mother," Zordon said.<br>"But Rita and Zedd are good now. Destroying your energy tube was supposed to cleanse the world," Billy said.  
>"It did, but Scorpina had been told from the day she could understand that Rita would bring a ranger to her so they could one day rule the evil world together. She was on Earth in a human form and, therefore, wasn't affected. The change in her parents devastated her and she set out to take what she believed was hers," Zordon began.<p>

"So because she was promised Tommy when he was the evil green ranger, she still believes he belongs to her," Meredith asked.

"Yes, my swan. Scorpina isn't abiding by any of the rules that were set down when the world was cleansed. She sought out a way to increase her evil, despite the fact that her parents were good and refused to help her in her evil plan. Rita made Scorpina promise she wouldn't harm Siobhan. Rita couldn't talk her daughter out of what happened, so she did the next best thing. She reached out to Dimitria and myself. I've been trying to figure out a way to come back to Earth and help you. I realized the only way I could save your futures, was to return to Earth in human form," Zordon said.  
>"I didn't think that was possible," Jason said.<p>

"The universe and her guardians feel they owe you all a debt of gratitude. You protected the Earth from countless invasions and managed to keep yourselves alive in the process. You served as guardians of the great power longer then any rangers in history. They have allowed me to come back to Earth in the form you see here. However, I will not be able to return to my ethereal state. When my mission to help save you, I will turn back into an inter dimensional being and exist between planes and time. No one will ever hear from me again," Zordon said.

"You're giving up your life, for us," Tommy asked.  
>"Everyone in the world owes you their lives for saving theirs. I want to help you all have happy futures. These children that you are expecting will be future rangers. They are the ones that will stand between the human race and those that seek to enslave it. If I don't help, none of that will happen and the Earth will fall," Zordon said.<br>The rangers assembled in the room couldn't believe what Zordon was telling them. They were all expecting babies, but to find out that these, the ones that will be born within months of each other, would be rangers, scared the group.

They knew that meant their children were special, but dealing with the prospect of having their children giving up their teen years to be superheros was a difficult reality for the parents to swallow. They had done it, but had also sacrificed a lot of things in order to be superheros. They weren't sure they wanted that for their children, but knew they were powerless to stop destiny.

"So how do we get Kimberly back," Tommy asked, pulling everyone out of their thoughts.

"We must locate the real Hayley. I suspect Scorpina hid her in another dimension. Her life may never have been interrupted, but she needs to be in this time, with us. The fact that there will be two Hayley's will cause a flux in whatever magic Scorpina is using to maintain Hayley's form. When we free Hayley, Scorpina should come to us and find out what happened. It's just a matter of catching her in her own dimensional vortex. She won't be able to hurt anyone else if she's inside," Zordon said.  
>"So how do we find Hayley," Jason asked.<br>"I'll scan for matching signatures. It should show two Hayleys," Billy said.  
>"Do it," Tommy said.<br>"I still don't understand why Rita and Zedd sent Scorpina back with Rita," Meredith said.  
>"Because it could mess up the time line. Rita and Zedd weren't married in the beginning, but Scorpina was there. No one would think anything of Scorpina being by Rita's side. No one would suspect Scorpina of impersonating Hayley because it wouldn't even be on their minds," Zordon said.<br>"So by coming back, she would be immune to whatever happened," Rocky said.  
>"Exactly, Rocky. Since she's from a different time than the rest of you, when she was sent back she became immune to whatever was done to make her parents good because it hadn't happened when she was born," Zordon said.<br>"That's just twisted. Have you found anything, Billy," Tommy asked.

"I think so. I believe the real Hayley is in a dimension that has a portal access right near there. It looks like she's in a house," Billy said.  
>"That makes sense. Why spread yourself too thin," Meredith said.<p>

"So why don't Jason and I head to get Hayley out of the dimension. When we've freed her, you and Billy can head to wherever Scorpina has taken Kim," Rocky said.  
>"I'll go with Tommy and Billy. They will need my assistance," Zordon said.<p>

Meredith started to open her mouth but was quickly silenced by her husband.

"NO," he said, sternly.  
>"No, what," Meredith asked.<br>"You're not coming. You're going to sit here and monitor our progress. You have a baby to think about," Rocky said.  
>Meredith stuck out her bottom lip in a mocking pout. Rocky smiled and kissed her before allowing Billy to teleport them to the location.<br>"How can you do that," Meredith asked.  
>"Tommy's not a rocket scientist. I can scrounge up enough power to power this small teleporting platform. I borrowed it from the command center. It will only work two or three times before I have to shut it down and let it cool off," Billy said.<br>"So how long does it take to do that," Meredith asked.  
>"A week," Billy said, entering the coordinates into the teleporter. He, Tommy and Zordon stood on the pad and Meredith crossed her fingers that it would work.<p>

She watched them disappear and Meredith was left alone. She rubbed her swollen belly and looked up at the ceiling.

"Just bring them ALL home safe," she whispered before turning her attention to the monitors. Why Tommy had all this equipment boggled her mind and she didn't understand why an inactive ranger would have all of it in his house. But then again, Tommy never did anything halfway.

***Wow, can you believe we're at chapter 70? Will Tommy and Billy get to Kim? How is Zordon going to help? Will Jason and Rocky find Hayley and return her to the correct time?***


	71. Gotta Secret?

DISCLAIMER: See previous

GOTTA SECRET?

Rocky and Jason found themselves in a house. They searched the first and second floors for Hayley, but didn't find her.  
>However, when they opened the basement door, they heard the distinct sound of a dimensional portal. They neared it and saw a girl that looked an awful lot like Hayley sitting on a bench in what appeared to be another Reefside.<p>

"This must be it. So what are we supposed to do," Jason asked.  
>"Just pull her out," Rocky said.<br>"That seems a bit mean," Jason said.  
>"Well, we really can't explain it to her until she's here. We don't have that kind of time," Rocky said.<br>He looked at Jason before stepping into the portal. Jason followed immediately after.

They looked at each other before Rocky spoke to Hayley.

"Hayley," Rocky asked.

Hayley turned around. "Yes? Who are you," she asked them.  
>"No time to explain. Come on," Jason said.<p>

The two former reds took Hayley, gently and guided her to the portal. Before she could scream or protest, they were through the portal and back in the basement.

Rocky and Jason hated having to man-handle a woman, but they had to act quickly.

"WHAT THE HELL," Hayley screamed. She stopped screaming when she realized she was in a basement and not on a bench like she thought.

"W...what is g...going on here," she asked, her fear showing in her voice.

"We're not here to hurt you. Please, we friends. We're trying to save you," Rocky said.

"What is going on," Hayley said, trying to act tougher than she actually felt.

"You've been living in an alternate dimension. You've been placed there by an evil witch named Scorpina. She's taking your place and in the hopes of having Tommy to herself," Rocky said.

"We came here to bring you back to the right dimension so you can help us save our friend, Kimberly and, hopefully, send Scorpina back to wherever she came from," Jason said.

Hayley looked at the two men before she started to swoon. Rocky jumped behind her and caught her before she fell.

"That went well," Jason said.

Rocky activated his communicator and contacted Meredith.

"Meri, can you bring us back to Tommy's? Hayley's fainted on us and I want to get her back there before someone decides to show up because they've figured out what we're doing," Rocky said.  
>"I think I can. You both ready," Meredith asked.<br>"Ready, babe," Rocky said.

"Go, Meri," Jason said.

Meredith pushed the buttons Billy told her would bring everyone back. She closed her eyes and prayed they'd make it back in one piece.

Jason and Rocky appeared on the small teleporting pad, Hayley in Jason's arms.

Meredith got out of the chair and grabbed the medical bag Tommy had put together in the lair.

"What happened," Meredith asked as she examined the patient.

"She fainted. We didn't even tell her why we took her away," Rocky said.

"Probably the shock of the portal threshold. I remember my first trip to the dark dimension. That dimensional threshold had me on my back with a headache for two days. Remember, Jase," Meredith asked as she listened to the patients heart.

"How could I forget! You had everyone scared and Tommy was doing his evil thing at the time and it was weird and there wasn't anything anyone could do for you," Jason said.  
>"Well, that headache changed our lives and I'm not going to complain. I just wish it had been less painful," Meredith said.<br>Jason and Meredith's easy banter ended quickly and Rocky was confused. He was about to ask what happened, but Meredith put the stethoscope back in the bag and pronounced Hayley fine, just suffering from shock.

"Let's cover her up and wait for her to awaken on her own. Her body's been through a HUGE shock. She'll be in for an even bigger one when she hears the whole story about why she was kidnapped by two menacing former power rangers," Meredith said.

"Have you heard from Tommy? Have they found Kimberly," Jason asked.  
>"No. Thankfully, Kim's mom still has Siobhan and was planning to keep her overnight so Kim could work on the last minute wedding stuff. I just hope Tommy gets back before Siobhan has to come home. I'd hate to have to explain this one to Kim's mom," Meredith said.<br>"Who has Erika," Jason asked.  
>"My parents were going to keep her overnight. Eric was spending the day with her. We'll pick her up after...Meri you're doctor's appointment is tomorrow," Rocky said, shocked that he'd forgotten until that moment.<p>

"I know. I'm still going. I know the last thing Tommy would want is for me to slack off on taking care of myself and the baby because of his upheaval. He'll be back soon," Meredith said.  
>"Of course he will, babe," Rocky said.<br>Jason sat on the sofa and closed his eyes. "You feeling OK, Jase," Meredith asked.

"Yeah, just tired," he said.

"I understand that," she said, sitting back in the chair.

"So how did that headache change your life, babe. I don't think you'd told me about that story or about how the dimensional shifts and portals gave you headaches," Rocky asked.  
>He'd never heard the story and was curious about why Meredith had never told him.<p>

"I didn't go to the party and they didn't bother me once I got used to them," she said to him.

Rocky's head slowly nodded in understanding. Jason's face became red as the memory of what he'd done that night came to the surface. He pushed it back down because he and Meredith had gone past it and he was ready to forget what happened.

The trio sat in silence as they waited for word from Billy and Tommy regarding Kimberly. None of them spoke of the reappearance of Zordon. It was just too much for them to comprehend at that moment.

"Is there a plan to get her back," Tommy asked.

Tommy looked around the location they teleported to and wondered what was so special about this location.

"Kimberly is hidden behind this shielded castle. Remember the shielded castle, Tommy," Zordon asked.

Both Billy and Tommy nodded remembering the times they had fought here as rangers and when they had rescued Kimberly the first time.

"Why bring her back," Tommy asked.  
>"It's her safe place. She's activated the shield. You will need my assistance to get past it and bringing Kimberly back," Zordon said.<br>"So what do we do," Billy asked.  
>"I'm going to enter the doorway and it will set off an alarm. You will both rush and get Kimberly. She's on the second level, third door on the right. No matter what happens, you must contact the swan and have her get you both and Kimberly out of here. Do not worry about me," Zordon said.<br>"We can't leave you," Tommy said.  
>"Falcon, you must. The only way the Crane and Falcon can be joined and live happily is if I sacrifice myself. You have to get married. The fate of the entire world rests on that union. And the birth of your child and your sister's children will be a day of rejoicing for the good. Evil will cower in a corner because the Earth will have more goodness and pure energy than ever at that time. You will help usher in a new world of peace for the galaxy," Zordon said.<p>

Before either could protest, Zordon stepped toward the shielded castle. "Go, now," he said before stepping into the hidden wall.

The castle immediately came into view, just as before. They ran to the stairs and quickly found the room that housed Kimberly. They freed her and Tommy carried her back down the stairs. They rounded the corner and saw Zordon begin to engage Scorpina.

"You've come back, old man," Scorpina said, menace in every word.

"Yes, Scorpina. I have come back. I have come back to save you," Zordon said.  
>"Save me! You left me with my mother and that THING I'm supposed to call a father. Now, I'm going to destroy the 'children' you care so much for and then you'll wish you'd paid me the attention I deserved," Scorpina said.<br>Zordon approached her. Billy and Tommy were sneaking toward the exit and slipped out as Zordon was talking to Scorpina. Billy was ready to activate his teleportation and get them out of there when he caught something that shook him to the core.

"I'm sorry," Zordon said, reaching out to Scorpina.

"You're sorry? Mom was right, you never loved me," Scorpina said.

"Of course I love you. I am your father," Zordon said.

***How many saw THAT coming? Insert evil Darth Vader voice here. :-) How, you're asking yourselves? I'll tell you, in a bit.*** -mereditholiver


	72. Telling the Tale

DISCLAIMER: See previous

TELLING THE TALE

Tommy and Billy arrived back at the lair, Kimberly safe in Tommy's arms.

Tommy sat Kimberly on the floor, but she held onto Tommy.

Billy's shell shock was evident on his face and Tommy called him on it.  
>"What's the matter, Billy," he asked.<br>Billy looked at the former leader. "Did you hear Zordon back there with Scorpina," he asked.  
>"No, I was checking on Kimberly. Why," Tommy asked.<br>Billy took a deep breath. "He said HE was Scorpina's father."

"That's impossible. Everything you told us said Zedd was her father, thanks to Dark Spector and that they sent her back so Rita wouldn't be lonely," Meredith said. She was checking Kimberly out while they talked about what had happened.

"I know what we found out, but something tells me that Zordon wouldn't have lied about that. We know he had some kind of relationship with Rita," Billy said.

"Wait a minute! Zordon told Scorpina that he was her father? Where is Zordon? He has to explain," Jason said.  
>"He told us to head back with Kimberly. He was engaging Scorpina when we left," Billy said.<br>"We have to save him," Rocky said.  
>"Zordon was willing to sacrifice himself to help us save Kimberly. We have to believe he'll come back and give us the information we need," Billy said.<br>Meredith looked at the group. "What if he doesn't come back? Are we going to be able to go on with not knowing? Is it going to affect our lives," she asked.  
>"We have to believe that he would have told us if he thought we needed to know. He'll tell us if we're supposed to know. We have to trust Zordon," Kimberly said.<br>"Kim's right. Zordon would tell us if we are meant to know," Tommy said.

"How's Hayley," Billy asked.  
>"She's suffered a severe shock. Probably brought on by not only the fact she was taken to another place by two unknown guys, but also because of the dimensional portal. You know how some people can headaches from those," Meredith said.<br>"I remember one you got. That was brutal," Tommy said.

"How are you feeling, Kim," Meredith asked, anxious to change the subject.

"Tired. Does mom still have Siobhan," she asked.  
>"Yeah," Meredith said.<br>The group started at each other, trying to comprehend what had happened in the last few hours. The revelation about Zordon and Scorpina was throwing them all off balance and none of them knew how to handle it.

"What do you mean, you're my father? You were nothing but this annoyance to my mother. How could you be my father," Scorpina asked.

"I will tell you this story, but I need to let my rangers hear it for themselves at the same time. It is the only thing I've ever kept from them," Zordon said.

He spoke into a communicator on his wrist. He was immediately answered by Jason.  
>"Zordon, are you alright," Jason asked.<br>"I am fine. Please, have Billy lock onto my signal and send it through the visual outputs in the lair. I need for you to hear this story," Zordon said.  
>Billy pushed a few buttons and locked onto the signal. Seconds later, the screen was filled with Zordon and Scorpina. Her look was one of anger and shock. Not a good combination.<br>"Your mother and I had been together for centuries. I loved your mother, deeply. Her long hair was as shiny as the stars in the galaxy. She had a smile that lit up the room, much like the sun on a Spring day. Everything we did was wonderful. We decided to approach the council on our planet about allowing us to have a child. Beings of our power on Eltar needed to ask before they could begin the process. We were given permission to start a family and we were excited when we found out you were coming. However, the pregnancy didn't sit well with your mother. There were a few on our planet, particularly in our order, that couldn't handle pregnancy. There was no way to predict it until actually happens. The mother would exhibit symptoms during the early stages and would be flagged by the council. They'd be sent away and their pregnancy terminated. No one would reveal what happened if the baby was brought to term. When you're mother started...changing, I took her to a hideaway that had been used by the order when we were first attacked by the Machine Empire. I kept her there until you were born. It was then I realized why they wanted to terminate the pregnancy's of those that changed during it. You're mother changed in appearance to the mother you know now. She had been invaded by the Evil that constantly threatened our world. We had more Good than Evil, but, because of her vulnerability during the pregnancy, she was invaded with Evil. Please, understand, I didn't want anything to happen to your mother. I thought I could help her, but her Evil was relentless. The council had no choice but to send her away and have you go with her. You were showing signs of Evil at an early age. Your aura was dark, despite my being your father. The council demanded that I let your mother take you with her when she was banished. I didn't have any choice. As much as I wanted to go with you and your mother, I would have died if I had left Eltar. I was forbidden to have any contact with you or your mother. She was banished and there was nothing I could do. We didn't know how to change you from Evil to Good. It had never been done before and we were clueless how to stop it. I never knew what your mother was doing because I was forbidden to contact her. I had believed she was trapped in the dumpster on the Moon. When an Evil empress threatened Earth, I asked to go into the dimensional vortex and save the planet. I had nothing left for me on Eltar. I was shocked when I discovered that your mother was responsible for the Evil doings on Earth. I didn't know what to do. I struggled with what I was supposed to do. I didn't want to believe she was responsible for the horrors that were being unleashed, but I had to face the fact that I was going to have to destroy her. Believe me, Scorpina, I did not want to harm your mother, but I had learned that defeating her was the only way to save her. She was using you for her twisted games and I wanted so badly to let the rangers know the truth. When I was preparing to tell them, your mother married Zedd. I knew there was no way I could get her back without destroying her completely. I had hoped we could get you back the same way we were able to save Tommy, but you had been Evil from birth," Zordon said.  
>Scorpina was quiet. She stared at Zordon, unable to believe his tale.<p>

"Why didn't you tell me? Why let me believe that Zedd was my father," she asked.

"I couldn't tell you. If I had, would you have believed me? No because of what your mother would have told you. I let everyone believe that Zedd set you back in time to be with your mother. It was easier than explaining why I wasn't around during your childhood," he said.

"Why now," she asked.  
>"Because, these rangers are my children. All those that came after them weren't hand-picked by myself and I didn't sacrifice my presence on this planet for just anyone. These rangers are special. They are bringing forth the next generation of rangers. You see, there is an evil that will be far more powerful than anything your mother or Zedd or any of the other Evil powers that have come before could EVER comprehend. These rangers are the strongest and the best rangers to have ever held the power. You tormenting Kimberly and Tommy because you believed that Tommy was to be your Evil prince, was something I alone had to stop. This group gave up so much to fight Evil, that I had to do what I could to help them," Zordon said.<br>"What does that have to do with me now? Mom and Zedd are Good now. I wasn't in this place when your Goodness purified the Evil in the world. I have a mother that can't deal with me now because she can't handle an Evil child. What am I supposed to do now," Scorpina said.  
>"You can let me save you now. Let me be your father. Before I left my plane of existence to take this corporal form, I was told I could never return. I was told this would be the end of my existence. When this body died, so would I. However, I have been able to retain my powers. The only thing I can't do is make myself immortal because that would be using my powers for selfish gain. I can make you Good and we can live on Earth together. I can show you all the wonders of being human and being Good. You can find comfort in the rangers and listen to their stories. I desperately want the chance to be your father," Zordon said.<br>Scorpina looked at him, unsure of what to do. She didn't have anything waiting for her at the Moon Palace. Her parents, well her mother and Zedd, didn't speak with her much because of her career choices. 'Maybe finding my father and living as a good person might not be so bad,' she thought to herself.

"What do you have to do," she asked Zordon.

"Close your eyes. If you are sincere, the Good will flow through your body and you will notice a change," he said.  
>"What about everything I have done," she asked.<br>"It will be as if it never happened," he said.  
>"How," she asked.<p>

"The kidnappings of Rocky and Kimberly will have never happened. Kimberly's stalking will fade into the background. I will take them back to right before they returned from the moon mission. Everyone will come back from that mission. There will be no trouble from that event," Zordon said.  
>"OK. Let's give it a try," she said, closing her eyes.<br>Zordon placed his hands on her shoulders and soon they were enveloped by a yellow glow. Scorpina transformed from her Scorpion form and into an attractive woman with long black hair and dark eyes. She looked like any of the people the rangers had come into contact with through out high school.

When she opened her eyes, she was amazed at how she felt. She had no remembrance of what happened, but she immediately recognized her father, Zordon.

"Dad! It's been too long," she said, as she hugged him.

***Eh, it has a point, I promise!*** -mereditholiver


	73. Let's Try This Again

DISCLAIMER: See previous

LET'S TRY THIS AGAIN

Kimberly waited with her best friends at the hanger. Meredith was pacing and wringing her hands. She was praying everyone would return. Katherine stood, silently, not drawing attention to herself or how worried she was about Jason.

The three women saw the ship land and all held hands as they watched the former red rangers exit the ship.

Carter greeted the woman with a wave and smile before taking off for his vehicle.

TJ followed behind and, upon seeing Meredith and Katherine, smiled and approached them. He gave each of them a hug and greeted Kimberly.

"That was some mission," TJ said. He turned and saw Eric exit the ship and head for Meredith. She hugged her friend, glad that he'd made it back safely. "I guess I'll see you guys later," Eric said, before waving and heading toward his car.

TJ chatted with the women for a few minutes before he said goodbye and promised to call Tommy to set up dinner with the Olivers at a later date.

The three woman waited for their husbands and boyfriend to exit the ship.

The three emerged from the inside of the ship together and headed for the women. Their loves took off running and flung themselves into the open arms of Jason, Tommy and Rocky.

"Told you I'd come back, babe," Rocky said, kissing her.

"Not a scratch on us," Jason said, kissing Katherine.

"Mission accomplished," Tommy said, before he kissed Kimberly.

"You ladies miss us while we were gone," Jason asked.  
>The three woman shook their heads.<p>

"Rocky and I are going home. I'll call you guys later and we can get together," Meredith said.  
>"Sounds good, Meri," Kimberly said and Katherine nodded in agreement.<p>

Meredith and Rocky headed for his Jeep. She couldn't believe how glad she was the Rocky was home safely and she couldn't wait to share her news with Rocky.

On the drive home, Rocky talked a bit about the mission and Meredith actually wished she could have seen the reds in action, defending Earth one more time as a team.

"I bet it was weird having the red ninja power again," Meredith said to her husband.  
>"It was, but it felt right. I know I took the red ranger power from Jason and I never felt like it belonged to me. The ninja and Zeo powers were mine. I felt like I could do something with them," Rocky said.<br>"You know that no matter what color you were, I still loved you," Meredith said.  
>"I know," Rocky said, as he parked in their garage.<p>

The strolled hand-in-hand to the building and took the steps to their apartment.

Meredith couldn't help but notice how tired Rocky seemed. She knew he needed to sleep, but she knew if she didn't tell him this news first, she'd burst.

"Honey, can you sit down for a second? I know you're tired and all that, but I have something important to tell you," Meredith said.

Rocky looked at her with concern and sat on the couch. Meredith sat next to him and took his hands.

"What's wrong, babe," he asked.

"Nothing! I'm pregnant," she said.  
>Rocky's eyes widened in amazement and he said, "Really? When did you find out?"<p>

Rocky and the guys had been gone for three days and during that time Meredith had taken a test because she suspected she was pregnant.

"Right after you left with Tommy and Jason, I suspected that I might be. I took a test when I got back here and it was positive," she said.  
>"Why didn't you wait for me," he asked.<p>

"I thought it would be negative again. I didn't think I could handle seeing the disappointment on your face. I would have felt like a failure," Meredith said, her eyes glistening.

"Babe, you could NEVER be a failure to me. Oh, my God, I'm going to be a father! We're having a baby," Rocky said, jumping off the couch.

Meredith smiled and laughed at her husband's enthusiasm. He held out his hands and she stood up. He took her in his arms and kissed her before ushering his wife upstairs. Sleep was going to wait a while. They were going to celebrate.

"Did you tell anyone," Katherine asked her husband on the way home.

"Kitten, you told me you wanted to wait," Jason said.

"I don't want you to think I'm not excited, but I feel bad because I remember how sad Meri looked when we found out about Chloe. I just hope she and Rocky get pregnant soon," Katherine said.  
>"I know. Meri and Rocky would make wonderful parents. Much better than some of the parents I've seen in my job. Meri's going to be happy for us, you know that," Jason said.<p>

"I know. I just want to wait and find out if their treatment worked," Katherine said, pulling into their driveway.

"Treatment," Jason questioned. He wasn't aware of Meredith and Rocky doing treatments. "Were they trying IVF," Jason asked.

"Not this time. Meredith was trying fertility treatments. It's a grueling schedule. Taking the pills at the same time and being careful during sex..." Katherine started.  
>"OK, Kat, that's enough. I really don't want to hear about Meri and Rocky's sex life. I'm sure he'd be mortified if he found out you know so much. I just hope whatever they are doing works," Jason said.<p>

They entered the house through the garage and Jason headed upstairs. "I'm going to shower. Care to join me," he asked his wife, shooting her that 'melting' smile Meredith had coined for him in high school.

"I would love to, just let me call and check on Chloe. I want to make sure your mom and dad are doing OK with her," Katherine said.

"OK. I'll be waiting," Jason said, before heading back upstairs.  
>Katherine smiled at her husband. Jason was a gigantic teddy bear and she couldn't believe how she had pined for Tommy for several months before she noticed Jason. She counted her blessings everyday that she had a wonderful, loving husband and a beautiful daughter. She was excited to find out what the next child would be and she couldn't wait to tell everyone about it. Katherine made her phone call, found Chloe enjoying time with her grandparents and headed upstairs to her waiting husband. She opened the door and spied him in the shower. Again, she went weak. She loved everything about Jason and was grateful to be a part of his close circle of friends. She understood his need to have Meredith in his life as such a close friend and she wasn't jealous. She might have been, if she were younger, but she knew Meredith was devoted to Rocky and Jason had eyes for only her.<br>"Hey, Rex! Want some company," she said before slipping into the steamy shower with her husband.

"I started doing wedding stuff while you were gone. I booked the reception hall, caterer, confirmed the date at the park, the flowers and decided what Meri, Kat, Tanya and Aisha are going to wear. Now, you have to help me pick out invitations and decide on your wedding party, pick out the tuxes and help with the wedding cake," Kim said as she pulled into their garage.

"You guys were busy," Tommy said, taking her hand as they walked into the house.  
>"We were worried. It was much easier to do that then worry about you guys. I was also trying to keep from telling Kat and Meri that we're having another baby," Kim said.<p>

"Well, we're back, just like I promised. So you didn't tell the girls about the baby," he asked.  
>"No. I don't want to upset Meri. You know she and Rocky are having difficulties and I don't want to upset the apple cart. I wanted to wait to hear if the fertility treatments they were trying were going to work," Kimberly said.<br>"Those shots and pills Rocky was mentioning. I can't believe how much they have to do according to a schedule. I don't know if I could do it. I didn't get all details from Rocky, but I know he feels that Meri's disappointed and feels like it's her fault. Of course, she won't talk to me about it," Tommy asked.  
>"She won't talk about it with anyone, except Rocky. I hope they work. I know Meri's struggling with the prospect of them having to do IVF. She's not exactly sure where she stands on that," Kimberly said.<br>Tommy nodded his head. He was well aware of his sister's troubles, without going into much detail. He didn't want to think about his sister's sex life. He was surprised Kimberly knew what she knew about it. Changing the subject, he asked, "Where's Siobhan."  
>"Your parents. Remember they came back a few days ago. After they unpacked and your dad checked in with the office, they were over here. I told them you, Rocky and Jason had gone off on a guy's only camping trip," Kimberly said.<p>

"Good thinking," Tommy said. He entered the house and found the counter in the breakfast nook was covered with bridal magazines and various invitation samples.  
>"What'd you do? Buy out the bridal magazines at the store," Tommy asked.<p>

"I need to make sure I had some ideas. I am only doing this once and I'm getting the wedding I want. Especially since my mother has agreed to pay for everything," Kimberly said.

"Not everything. I'M taking care of the honeymoon," Tommy said, kissing Kimberly.

"We should pick out the invitations soon so we can get them out in time for the wedding," she said.  
>"That can wait. I haven't seen you in three days and Siobhan's not home," Tommy said.<br>Kimberly looked at her husband-to-be. "You might be right at that," she said, heading upstairs ahead of Tommy who playfully tried to grab her butt as she headed up the stairs.

***Everything that happened before, has been erased. Don't you love Zordon turning back time? But this isn't the last of them. Zordon did say the world owed them a huge favor. What's going to happen to them?***


	74. Blessings

DISCLAIMER: See previous

BLESSINGS

Kimberly stood in her living room, hoping she hadn't forgotten anything. She was excited for, not only the party, but what the party started. She was so excited about getting married to Tommy.

Meredith pulled into Tommy's driveway. Meredith held the ultrasound photos in her hand. She and Rocky had been to the doctor to get her due date and got the surprise of their lives. She just didn't know how she was going to tell everyone. They'd called their parents after the appointment and Rocky's mother had nearly fainted upon hearing the news. Meredith's parents had been shocked, but they were elated.

"Kim," Meredith called as she entered the house through the kitchen door.

"Meri," Kimberly said, rushing to hug her best friend and soon to be sister-in-law.

"What," Meredith asked. She took the food out of the fridge that she'd prepared earlier and Rocky had dropped off at Tommy's. She put the nacho dip into the microwave and turned on the oven to preheat so she could prepare the quesadillas.  
>"Tommy said you had a doctor's appointment yesterday afternoon. Is everything OK," Kimberly asked.<br>"Everything is fine. I'll tell you about it later. Did you find out your due date for this little one," Meredith said, touching Kim's pregnant belly.

"Right around Tommy's and your birthday. Isn't that crazy," Kim said.  
>"I think it's neat. My due date is the end of October and I'm hoping everything goes smoothly," Meredith said.<br>"Really? You're almost as big as me," Kimberly said.  
>Meredith laughed. "Well, Rocky wasn't a small baby, at least according to his mom," she said.<br>Before they could say anything else, the doorbell rang.  
>Kimberly went to the door, Meredith on her heels.<p>

"Look who I found," Tanya said, as she, Katherine and Aisha came into the living room.  
>Kimberly and Meredith hugged everyone and they all went into the kitchen where Kimberly and Meredith had started setting out the food for their 'bachelorette' party.<p>

The girls, since everyone was pregnant, had decided to pig out on their favorite foods and watch movies, much like they'd done in high school.

"I know this isn't the bar hopping party from when Meredith got married," Kimberly said.  
>"Or the strip club from Tanya's party," Meredith said.<p>

"Or the concert from Katherine's party," Aisha said.  
>"Or the trip to the zoo for Aisha's," Katherine said.<p>

"But we're going to have a hell of a time reliving our childhood with a slumber party," Tanya said.  
>"Only now, we CAN have male companionship without fear of getting caught," Meredith said, taking a drink of her tea.<p>

The girls laughed and headed into family room of Kim and Tommy's home. There was a sectional couch and Meredith took one corner and Kimberly took the other. Katherine sat herself in the middle, putting the foot rest up on the sofa. Aisha took the recliner and Tanya sat in the love seat.

Kimberly started the first movie and they girls soon found themselves talking about the olden days and their pregnancies.

"OK, Kim, when's the second Oliver due," Katherine asked.

"Right around Tommy and Meri's birthday," Kimberly said.  
>"Do you know you're having," Aisha asked.<br>"Yep. It's a boy," Kim said.

"Adam told me your big news, Tanya," Meredith said, popping a piece of popcorn in her mouth.  
>"I'm due in the beginning of October. And before you say it, it was a big shock, but we're excited Jasmine and her little sister will be close in age," Tanya said.<br>"Well, since everyone is admitting their big news, I should drop my bombshell. Zack and I are pregnant, too. And we're having another girl," Aisha said.

"You know already," Kimberly asked.  
>"I'm due around Labor Day," Aisha said.<p>

"Congrats. That's wonderful," Tanya said.

"Well, seeing as how everyone is pregnant, I should join the party. Jason and I are due to have our second child around the same time, Kim," Katherine said.

"That's amazing! We're all pregnant at the same time," Kimberly said. She turned to Meredith. "Meri, when is the little DeSantos due."

"End of October. And it's DeSantos'," she said.  
>"Oh, you're having twins. Well, makes since considering you and Tommy are twins," Katherine said.<br>"Actually, it's not twins. Rocky and I are having triplets," Meredith said.

The four women looked at Meredith, shock on their faces. Kimberly was the first person to say something. "Well, that would explain why you're looking so much bigger than me," she said, smiling at her soon-to-be sister-in-law. Everyone started laughing as Meredith threw the pillow she had next to her at Kimberly.

***Tommy and Kimberly get married next. I know you're all excited for that. And Zordon's going to pay another visit.*** -mereditholiver


	75. Aw, Heck

DISCLAIMER: See previous.

AW, HECK

"Will you stop it! You're driving me crazy. My brother is driving me crazy, so please just RELAX," Meredith said to Kimberly.

"Relax. Relax! RELAX! How can I relax when I'm getting married," Kimberly said to her best friend.

"Don't get snippy with me, Kimberly Ann Hart! You've forced me to wear this pink taffeta creation that makes me feel like a five foot tall piece of cotton candy, not to mentioned a beached whale. So, the least you could do is stop pacing, stop yelling and SIT DOWN," Meredith said.

"Meri's right, Kim. Tommy's here and you're going to get married," Aisha said.

"I just know something is going to happen. I just know it," Kimberly said.  
>"Something will happen. You and Tommy will FINALLY get married and the rest of us will go back to our drama free lives waiting for the birth of our children," Meredith said, rubbing her belly.<p>

"I still can't believe you're having triplets," Katherine said.  
>"Rocky and I can't either," Meredith said.<br>"When you two do something, you really do it, don't you," Aisha said.  
>Meredith tossed a piece of paper at her friend.<p>

"Meri, are you SURE Tommy's here," Kimberly asked.  
>"Yes. I drove him here with Rocky. He's in his tux and he's going to be waiting at the altar for you," Meredith said.<br>Tanya slipped into the room at that moment.  
>"Meri, can you come out here," Tanya said.<p>

"Sure," Meredith said.

Meredith helped Kimberly zip up her dress and left the room to find her husband in the hallway.

"What's wrong? I know Tommy's here and I know everyone else is here, so why are you standing here," she asked.  
>"You need to talk to Tommy," Rocky said.<br>Meredith's heart hit the floor. "Don't. Don't," Meredith said to Rocky.

She walked past her husband and went toward the room the men had congregated in before the wedding. She knocked on the door.

"Bro, it's me," she said.  
>Jason opened the door and motioned for Zack and Adam to follow him out of the room. Jason closed the door behind him and left the Oliver siblings alone.<br>"What," she asked, ready to take her brother's life if he told her he wasn't getting married.

"I've been keeping something from Kim and she'll kill me when she finds out," Tommy said.

"There is nothing that will cause Kimberly to hate you. Unless, of course, you decide you don't want to get married or you're madly in love with Katherine or Aisha or Tanya or Jase or Rocky. Any of those fit the bill of your secret," she asked, hands across her chest.

"MEREDITH! I want to marry Kimberly. More than I've ever wanted anything in my life," he said.  
>"Well, then, THOMAS, tell me what's so important that you're delaying the start of your own wedding and causing Kimberly to have a nervous breakdown," she asked, sitting in a chair.<p>

Tommy didn't say a word, he just pulled up his tux sleeve and Meredith didn't need any explanation.  
>"I knew it," she said, under her breath before she screamed at him, "DAMNIT, TOMMY!"<p>

Tommy flinched. He knew the reaction would be strong, but this wasn't what he expected from his sister.  
>"What were you thinking? No...no... wait, I don't want to know WHAT you were thinking," she said, getting out of the chair and turning her back to him.<br>"Aw, heck, Meri. I don't know what I was thinking," he said.  
>Meredith turned around slowly and faced him. "Yes you did. You wanted to do it again. You wanted to go back. You've always felt like you HAD to do it. It's just like the moon mission. You couldn't let it go. You had to do it," she said.<br>Tommy closed his eyes and swallowed. "You're right," he said.  
>"Of course I'm right. So now you have to tell Kimberly, but I advise you to wait until AFTER the wedding. That way, she'll be able to have her fairytale wedding before she kills you," she said.<br>"Thanks, Meri. You're supposed to help me," he said.  
>"I am. You know when Kimberly finds out about this she's going to be mad and not because you didn't tell her about it. Although, that's reason enough," she said.<br>"What then," he asked.  
>"It's because she didn't want you to pick up the ranger mantle again. She hated every minute you were gone on that moon mission. Think how she'll feel knowing your out there, again, fighting," she said.<br>"Do I have to tell her," Tommy asked.  
>"Wouldn't take long after she saw you fight. I had a feeling it might be you out there, but I was hoping I was seeing things. I thought it was one of the students you had trained," Meredith said.<br>"They are there, too," Tommy said.  
>Meredith closed her eyes. She knew her brother and that being a ranger was something he felt he had to do. It was like an instinct to him. If she were honest with herself, she'd admit the same thing. She'd be willing to become a ranger again, but she had her husband and her children to think about.<p>

"You have to tell Kimberly, but don't do it now. Have the wedding, let us all makes fools out of ourselves with speeches and dancing, leave for the honeymoon and then tell her. Before she figures it out on her own," Meredith said.  
>Tommy smiled at his sister. Despite the tongue lashing she'd delivered, Meredith had spoken the truth.<p>

"Now, can we get you married," she asked.  
>"Yes! Let's go," he said.<br>Meredith shared a hug with her brother and headed out the door.  
>"It's showtime," she said, as she exited the room. Jason, Adam, Zack and Rocky smiled at her and re-entered the room to help Tommy finish getting ready.<p>

Meredith went down the hall and returned to Kimberly and the rest of the wedding party.

Kimberly looked at Meredith when she entered the room, her face deathly white.  
>"He's not backing out, is he," she asked Meredith in a quiet voice.<br>"No he's not backing out. He just needed a little pep talk and Jason and Rocky just weren't working for him," she said, smiling.  
>"You sure," Kimberly asked.<br>"Well, I'm not sure about much in this world, considering everything we've seen as rangers, but I do know that Thomas Michael Oliver is crazy in love with you and can't wait to get married. You have nothing, and I mean nothing to worry about when it comes to Tommy's love for you. He's waiting at the aisle for you, so we'd better get going," she said, smiling at her soon to be sister-in-law.

Meredith fixed the back of Kimberly's dress before they lined up to get started.

Kimberly had chosen a pale pink wedding dress. It was an a-line style with an empire waist to best accommodate her pregnancy. It was strapless and featured a simple beaded design on the dress. She wore a simple tiara with a sheer pink veil attached. She was wearing pink open toed three inch heels. She just hoped they got the wedding under way because she felt she wouldn't fit into this dress by the end of the night.

The girls were wearing strapless pink dresses with empire waists and a floor length tiered skirt. They all wore simple pink satin heels and carried bouquets of red and white roses.

Kim's bouquet was white, pink and red roses tied with a green bow. Those that were close to the couple understood the meaning behind the colors.

The girls all took their places and soon the music began and they headed down the aisle.

Rocky was standing next to his brother-in-law. Rocky and Tommy had become close since Rocky had married Meredith and Tommy had asked him to be best man. Jason stood next to Rocky followed by Zack and Adam.

Meredith was Kimberly's matron of honor. She was followed down the aisle by Katherine, Aisha and Tanya.

When Tommy first caught a glimpse of his bride, he was speechless. He loved this woman with his entire self and he couldn't believe they had finally arrived at this moment. Everything they had been through as a couple had not succeeded in keeping them apart.

Rocky knew Tommy and everyone else was watching Kimberly, but he only had eyes on the lady at the front of the line, standing across from him.  
>Meredith looked beautiful in her pink dress, despite being pregnant with triplets. He thought back to his own wedding to Meredith while listening to the wedding march. He smiled and turned back to Kimberly, who was walking down the aisle in a beautiful pink dress.<p>

Jason spied his wife, heading down the aisle behind Kimberly. He was so excited for his longtime friend. He'd been there when Kimberly and Tommy had initially gotten together and, despite everything that had happened to them, they had emerged stronger than ever. He smiled as his 'kitten' came down the aisle, her eyes shining and her bright smile warming his heart. He couldn't wait for the birth of their second child. The ultimate proof of their successful marriage.

Zack saw his Aisha walking down the aisle. It seemed odd seeing her in pink, but times had changed since they were rangers in high school. He couldn't believe how lucky he'd become. He was married to a smart, successful woman who'd given him two beautiful twin daughters and she was pregnant with their third. He smiled at her hoping she knew how much he loved her.

Tanya was at the end of the line. To Adam, she'd always be first. He smiled at her and remembered all of the things she had done for him to finish medical school. Everything she had done to create the loving family they had at that moment. Nothing made him happier than his family. He was excited about the arrival of their next child and couldn't wait to see what the future held.

Meredith smiled at her husband as she took her place across from him. She couldn't believe how much she loved him. They'd been through a lot as a couple and had grown stronger together. Meredith felt blessed to have a loving husband, three children on the way and a wonderful group of friends, not to mention her loving brother.

Katherine looked at Jason. He looked incredibly sexy in his tuxedo and Katherine felt those same butterflies. She smiled as he winked at her and she had to concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other because Jason had blown her mind.

Aisha looked at her husband. He caught her eye and winked at her. It made her feel so special. Zack had totally changed his ways from when she first saw him and now they had a strong marriage, two beautiful children and, not to mention, a successful career that she owned, in part, to her husband. Zack had moved all over California while she had studied for her veterinary license. She counted herself a lucky girl.

Tanya smiled at Adam. Her husband looked adorable in his tux, but his shy demeanor was still evident. Despite being around his friends he was still reserved and shy. Tanya was willing to be that Rocky and she were the only ones that truly knew Adam's personality. She knew her husband had sacrificed a lot for them to be together and, while she'd felt miserable herself for what happened, she knew he never blamed her for his parent's attitude. She loved Adam and she only hoped that, as they grew older, she could show him.

Tommy looked at the petite little fireball in a pale pink wedding dress. He knew this day would arrive, but he didn't know when. All the bumps they had in the road had made it all worth it. They had a wonderful relationship together and they had Siobhan and a son on the way. Tommy couldn't wait until she was Kimberly Oliver. Watching her walk down the aisle was excruciating for him. He just wanted to get to the good stuff and be done with it. He smiled at her as she stepped to the front of the altar and he took her hands in his.

Kimberly thought the walk down the aisle would never end. If she hadn't been in heels, and pregnant, and dreaming of this day for her entire life, she would have ran down the aisle as fast as her feet could go. She couldn't wait to marry Tommy. She'd been dreaming of this day for her entire life and no groom but Tommy would work. Despite everything that had been thrown in their path, they were getting their dream. A family and a life together, forever. Kimberly took Tommy's hands and returned the smile that she knew, KNEW was only ever for her. Other people got a Tommy smile, but she was the only one that got the patented, Tommy-Oliver-make-your-knees-weak smile. This was a smile that was reserved for her and her alone.

"I've seen this day coming for a long, long time. However, I didn't think it would take this long, despite Tommy's forgetful and tardy nature. Do you two wish to say anything," Billy asked.  
>Kimberly cleared her throat and looked at her soon-to-be husband. "There are so many things I had planned to say, but now that I'm here, I can't remember them. I love you with everything that I am. Nothing I have done can compare to the family we've created together. I love you, Tommy and I always will," Kimberly said.<p>

"Tommy," Billy asked.  
>"I love you. I love our family. I can't live my life without you. That's all I can say. I love you," Tommy said.<p>

"Do you, Kimberly Ann Hart, take Thomas Michael Oliver to be your husband," Billy asked.  
>"I do," Kimberly replied.<p>

"Do you, Thomas Michael Oliver, take Kimberly Ann Hart to be your wife," Billy asked.  
>"I do," Tommy answered.<p>

"Congratulations, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Tommy, you may kiss the bride," Billy said.  
>Tommy smiled and lifted the veil before kissing Kimberly.<p>

The kiss lasted long enough for Rocky to say, "OK, tiger. That's enough. Save it for the honeymoon," he said, causing the guests to laugh.

"I present to you for the first time, Thomas and Kimberly Oliver," Billy said.  
>Everyone stood and clapped as Tommy and Kimberly made their way down the aisle followed by their family and friends.<p>

***Tommy and Kimberly are married, finally. But Tommy hasn't told his new bride his secret. How is Kimberly going to handle it?***


	76. You Knew'

DISCLAIMER: See previous.

'YOU KNEW!'

"You knew about this the whole time? Meredith, I'm surprised at you," Kimberly said, looking at her best friend.

"Can we save the lecture for AFTER we figure out this mess? I never said anything because Tommy promised me he was going to tell you," Meredith said.

"You've been helping Tommy in his exploits as the black ranger? While you're pregnant? Meredith DeSantos have you lost your ever loving mind," Rocky asked his wife.

"Rocky, I'll explain everything to you later. I promise. Right now we have a situation," she said.  
>Everyone looked at her.<br>"What," Kimberly asked.

"That," Meredith said, pointing the amber rock in the middle of the lair.

"What is that," Aisha asked.

"That is amber," Meredith said.

"Who's Amber," Rocky asked.  
>"Not an Amber! It's a block of amber with Tommy inside. Really, Rocko," she said, shooting a glare at her husband for slipping into his high school persona.<br>They all looked at her like she HAD lost her mind.

"Dr. D's serious. Dr. O's trapped in there," Conner said.

"How did that happen," Kimberly asked, circling the rock in the lair.

"The White Ranger thought it would be cute to trap a paleontologist in amber," Meredith said.  
>"Any thoughts on how to get him out of there," Adam asked.<br>"Billy and Hayley are working on it. I'm not sure exactly what to do," Meredith said.  
>"So basically, the only thing we can do is wait until Hayley and Billy come up with something," Jason said.<br>"Basically," Meredith said.  
>"Meri, how long has this been going on? How long have you been helping Tommy with the new rangers," Jason asked.<br>"Three months, I think. That about right, Kyra," she asked the girl in yellow.

"Yeah. Dr. O's been a ranger for about two months," Kyra said.  
>"He was a ranger when we got married! And you knew! Meri, what was he thinking," Kimberly asked.<br>"He wanted to tell you and I actually encouraged him to tell you, but you know Tommy," Meredith said.  
>"Well, how did you get dragged into it," Rocky asked.<p>

"Tommy asked if I would help him," Meredith said.

Rocky expression to Meredith he was upset at her. She didn't know what he was more upset about, the fact that she was helping or that she didn't tell him she was helping. Either way, she had some serious explaining.

Billy and Hayley came down the stairs.

"We might have a way to get him out," Billy says.

"The meteor that the kids found earlier. Ethan brought back a piece for Billy to examine. We think it might have some properties to free Tommy from the amber," Hayley said.

"Well, let's try it," Kimberly said.

"Not so fast. You girls, at least, need to go upstairs. I'm not sure what effect this might have and we don't want anything to happen to the babies," Billy said.  
>"That's a good idea. We'll all go upstairs," Rocky said, pushing his wife upstairs while the rest of the guys did the same thing. Jason took Kimberly by the arm and propelled her to follow the rest of the group.<p>

When Rocky arrived upstairs with Meredith he pushed her into the guest room.

"All right, babe. You want to explain this to me," Rocky asked.  
>"Tommy found some Dino gems. He kept them in the hopes of using them if the world were ever threatened again. He never counted on being the one to pick up the ranger powers again, but they found him. Conner, Kyra and Ethan 'bonded' with the gems and Tommy took them under his wing. He asked if I'd help him mentor them. I agreed because I didn't see anything wrong with it. I mean we were always over here doing things for the house, so I just came over here while you were over there, since you won't let me do anything," Meredith said.<br>"For the last fifteen years, you've always talked about what being a ranger has cost everyone, especially your brother. We seemed to be the only ones that stayed together, despite the hardships. What were you thinking? How could you keep something like that from me? From Kimberly? God, babe, I don't understand why you would put yourself through this while pregnant. You know you're supposed to be careful," Rocky said.  
>"I know, but Tommy's my brother," Meredith said.<p>

"Yeah. Look, I hate to say this, but once again your brother is the other person in our marriage. I've been quiet for years. I'm building a house next door to your brother, but dammit Meredith, I'm your husband and you're having my children. I won't let anything mess up what we have. I will not let anything jeopardize our family," Rocky said.  
>"I know, but he IS my brother. I don't want to have anything happen to our family either," Meredith said.<br>"Then you have to promise me you are finished helping Tommy. You can give him advice, but no more secrets. Babe, you have to. You're going to give birth very soon and I want that to go smoothly. Our lives are going to change because of those three little ones. I just want some calm and for you to relax," Rocky said.

"OK. I promise," Meredith said.

Rocky kissed his wife and they went to join everyone else downstairs.

When Meredith spied her sister-in-law, she knew she was angry.  
>"Meredith, why didn't you tell me," she asked.<br>"Tommy promised he was going to tell you. I seriously doubt he thought he'd end up a human fossil," Meredith said.

"I still can't believe you'd keep this a secret," Jason said.

"It's not like you haven't kept a secret or two in your life," Meredith said.

"GUYS," Hayley called upstairs.

Everyone rushed downstairs.

Kimberly was overjoyed to see Tommy freed from the Amber, even if he was in a Ranger uniform.

"Tommy! Great! Are you OK," Meredith asked.  
>"Yeah, but I don't plan on spending my vacation there," he said.<br>"Do you think you could get out of the suit," Kimberly asked.  
>"I know that tone and I'm certain you're going to yell at me, so maybe it's safer if I stay in the suit," Tommy said.<br>"Thomas Oliver! Get out of the suit, now," Kimberly said.

Tommy made the attempt to power down, but he couldn't.

"That's not funny," she said to him.  
>"I'm trying, beautiful," he said.<p>

He tried again, without success.

"Oh, no. I think we have another problem," Billy said.

The angry glare on Kimberly's face was only part of the problem.  
>"Why can't he de-morph," Jason asked.<p>

"I don't know. Tommy, thoughts," Billy asked.  
>"It's like there is a power overload. Maybe we can defuse it with this," Tommy said, holding out his hand to reveal his Dino gem.<br>"Tommy, this is crazy," Hayley said.

"It is crazy, Hayley, but you might be holding the only solution to the problem. We know the Dino gem has some kind of energy in it. That energy might reverse the polarity that's keeping Tommy morphed," Meredith said.  
>"Sounds plausible. Let's put it in here," Billy said, taking the gem and putting it in the machine.<p>

"Here goes," Hayley said.

She activated the power and bright light flashed in front of Tommy.  
>"It worked," Tommy said.<br>The light faded and Meredith saw what happened, or rather didn't see what happened.

"I can't believe this," Meredith said.  
>"Believe what, babe," Rocky asked.<br>"Where is he," Kimberly asked.  
>"I'm right here," Tommy said.<br>Kimberly turned around. "This isn't funny, Tommy."

"He's not joking, Kim," Meredith said.

"THOMAS MICHAEL OLIVER," Kimberly screamed.  
>"What's the commotion about. I don't see anything," Rocky said.<br>"That's the problem. Tommy's invisibility from his Dino gem has kicked into overdrive. He's invisible," she said.  
>The whole room groaned.<br>"Now, how exactly do you intend to get out of this one, Tommy," Kimberly asked, landing a direct hit across his mid-section.

"Look at that. Even invisible, Kimberly knows where Tommy is," Jason said.

"Shut up, Jase, unless you can figure out how to get him out of this," Kimberly said. "Suggestions, Meri?"

Meredith looked at Kimberly then at her husband. She didn't have a clue how to get Tommy out of this mess and suddenly she realized how right her husband was. Next time Tommy asked her for a favor, she was going to say no.

***Now he's invisible. I apologize for taking so long to update. I was helping another writer with their work and got caught up in their story. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.*** -mereditholiver 


	77. It Was Just A Dream'

DISCLAIMER: Same as the last time!

'IT WAS ONLY A DREAM?'

Meredith awoke from her dream completely disoriented.

Rocky felt his wife sit up and he sat up next to her. "Babe, you OK," he asked.

"Yeah. Just had the weirdest dream. I'm going to get a drink. I'll be right back," she said, getting out of the bed.

"Want me to get it for you," Rocky said.

"No, just help me up. I need to walk anyway, my legs are cramping," Meredith said.

Rocky helped her up and she headed down the stairs. She entered the kitchen and saw the plans for the house they were building next to Tommy and Kimberly.

Rocky had talked to Tommy about buying the land next to his house, but far enough away so Meredith and he could have privacy. Tommy and Kimberly had been extatic about the prospect of Rocky and Meredith living next door. Rocky's goal was to have the house ready when Meredith had the triplets. They had designed a house months ago and Rocky had hired a crew to have the house finished in a matter of months. How he'd done it, Meredith didn't know, but knew her husband would find a way.

Meredith got a glass of juice from the fridge and picked up her cell phone. She called Tommy.

"Hello," he answered, sleep in his voice.

"Tommy, is everything OK," she asked.

"Meri? What's wrong," Tommy asked, immediately concerned.

"Nothing. I just had a dream about you and a block of amber," she said.

"Did you eat calamari for dinner," he asked.

"Tommy, stop being cute. I'm serious. I really thought yo were trapped in a block of amber. I don't know how much longer I can help you with you ranger business if you don't tell Kimberly. I hate not telling Rocky. I think he thinks something is up. God, I should never have let you talk me into something like this," Meredith said.

"I'll tell Kimberly this afternoon when the kids come by for dinner. You and Rocky coming over," Tommy asked.

"Probably. Rocky mentioned checking out the flooring and then making sure the bedrooms are ready for the painters," Meredith said.

"I'll tell her then AND I'll make sure that Rocko knows you didn't want to keep it from him, but I made you," Tommy said.

"That's going to go over really well," Meredith said.

"Get some sleep. Those little ones will be here before you know it. Kimberly's ready to deliver and she still has a month to go," Tommy said.

"What do you expect? She's carrying an Oliver for crying out loud. Have you seen your baby pictures," Meredith said, teasing her brother.

"That's enough out of you. You're an Oliver, too," he said.

"Yeah, but you were much bigger than me. I think mom said about twice my size," Meredith pointed out.

"Good night, sis," Tommy said.

"Night bro," she said, ending the call. She set the phone back on the counter and headed back upstairs. She just couldn't get it out of her head that something was about to happen to Tommy and she had a feeling it involved that white ranger he'd been talking about.

That night, Meredith was sitting in Tommy's living room, her feet on the foot rest. She was swelling and she knew it was because of the weight of carrying three babies. Her doctor had taken her out of work in anticipation of delivering the babies when Meredith hit 35 weeks. She was at 33 weeks and the doctor was expecting them at any time. Rocky was a nervous wreck and Meredith was afraid when Rocky found out what she'd been doing to help Tommy, he'd be more than a little angry with her.

Kyra sat on the couch next to Meredith, knowing she was keeping a secret from her husband, just like Tommy was keeping something from Kimberly.

"Kimberly, I have something I need to tell you. I'm not just teaching these three martial arts. I'm actually mentoring them," Tommy said.  
>"Mentoring them? Mentoring them for what," she asked.<p>

"There the new rangers," Tommy said.  
>Kimberly's face went blank. "Yellow, Red, Blue..." she said pointing to each one before settling on Tommy. "Black."<p>

Tommy gave Kimberly a sheepish grin, not even bothering to deny it.  
>"You just couldn't resist could you? You had to become a ranger again," she said.<p>

"What was I supposed to do," Tommy asked, knowing he shouldn't be having this conversation with Kimberly because she was pregnant.

"How about...um I don't know...NO. Hell, NO. That word even in your vocabulary," Kimberly asked.  
>"I couldn't say no, Kim," Tommy said.<br>"Why not? Seems to me that we had the choice to be rangers when we took up the power. We had the choice when we left and when we took the powers," Kimberly said.  
>"It really isn't that simple this time, Kimberly," Meredith said from her position on the couch.<p>

Rocky and Kimberly looked at the other Oliver twin.

"You knew about this! You knew what Tommy was doing? How long have you known," Rocky demanded.

Kimberly looked at her. "I should have guessed Meri would know what Tommy was doing," she said.  
>"I've only known since the wedding. Tommy asked for my help right after that because it was hard for him to run things AND be in the field. I never went into battle and stayed far from the action," Meredith said.<br>"You still didn't tell me," Rocky said.

"When were you guys going to let me in on the secret? After all, I am married to Tommy now," Kimberly said.  
>"I told him to tell you, but he didn't. What was I supposed to do, tell him despite him not wanting me to tell you," Meredith asked.<br>Rocky and Kimberly looked at the twins. Both understood why they had stuck together, but they were still upset by what they had kept from their spouses.

Kimberly sat down on the couch next to Meredith. "I'm sorry, Kim. I wanted to tell you and I never wanted to keep it from you. You either, Rocky," Meredith said.  
>"Rocko, Meri never wanted to keep anything from you. I begged her to keep it quiet because I didn't want Kim to find out until I was ready to tell her. I wanted to wait until after the baby was born. Thought it would be easier for her," Tommy said.<br>Kimberly let out a yelp on the couch and looked at Meredith. "We've gotta go," Kimberly said, looking at Tommy.

"Why? What's wrong," he asked.  
>"I'm in labor. I KNEW this was going to happen," Kimberly said.<p>

Tommy immediately ran to grab Kimberly's bag. "Can you guys take Siobhan to mom and dad," Tommy asked.  
>"Sure. We'll come over after we drop her off," Rocky said.<br>Kimberly went to the door and waited for Tommy, gritting her teeth as she fought a contraction. As they were walking out the door, Kimberly stopped.  
>"We better hurry because my water just broke," she said.<br>Tommy scooped her up and put her in the Jeep and headed toward the hospital.  
>Rocky went and grabbed his niece and put her in the car seat. They had purchased the same seats for the triplets, so Rocky snapped her in one of the seats in their van and headed to Meredith's parents.<p>

***OK, now everyone is going to have their babies. And Tommy will once again be trapped in amber.*** -mereditholiver


	78. Oh, Baby

DISCLAIMER: Same as before.

OH, BABY!

Tommy and Kim arrived at the hospital and she was immediately taken to a room to be checked in. They told Tommy he could come in as soon as they'd checked her.

Tommy called Meredith's cell phone.

"Hey, bro. Any news," she asked.  
>"They're checking her now. You guys get Siobhan dropped off with mom and dad," Tommy asked.<p>

"Yeah. We're on our way over there now. Jason and Katherine should be heading home tomorrow and Tanya and Aisha the next day. Figured we'd pop in and see everyone before we head home," Meredith said.  
>By some weird ranger twist, Katherine, Tanya and Aisha had delivered their girls at the same time. Kimberly having her baby so soon after them was more than a coincidence to the team.<p>

"I'll see you then," Tommy said.

Meredith ended the call with her brother and settled back in the seat. She was having trouble getting comfortable and Rocky noticed.  
>"You OK, babe," he asked.<p>

"Just have this horrible backache," she said.  
>"Maybe you should call the doctor. Backaches are a sign of labor you know," he said.<br>"I know, but I'm also carrying three babies in this tiny little body and my back is protesting the extra work, that's all," she said.

"Call the doctor. You haven't slept well the last few nights," Rocky said.  
>Meredith knew Rocky wouldn't let it go until she did as he asked, so she called the doctor. The answering service promised she'd get a call back shortly.<p>

As they pulled into the hospital parking garage, the phone rang.  
>"Meredith! What's this about a backache," the doctor asked her.<br>"I think it's just the weight of the babies, but Rocky's worrying," Meredith said.  
>"Well, I want to check you out. How soon can you get to the hospital," she asked.<br>"I'm here already. My sister-in-law is in labor," Meredith said.  
>"Great! I'll get you a room next door and we'll check you out," her doctor said.<br>"If you insist," Meredith said. "See you in a few."

Rocky took her hand and helped her out of the car.  
>"Well," he asked.<br>"She wants to check me out, so I have a room next to Kimberly's now," she said.

It wasn't until Meredith started walking down the hallways that she noticed it was increasingly difficult to do so. She arrived at the room out of breath and in pain.

"Meredith DeSantos! I don't have to check you. You're in labor," her doctor said.  
>"I was afraid of that," Meredith said.<br>"Let's prep, Dr. DeSantos. You're going to the OR after I check you," the doctor said.  
>Rocky helped Meredith get changed then left the room to see Tommy and update him.<br>"Tommy, Meri's having the baby's sometime tonight," Rocky said.  
>"Really? Kimberly's going to pushing in a few. Keep me posted," Tommy said, heading back into the room.<p>

Rocky was handed a pair of scrubs and was told to change into them for the OR.

Meredith's doctor met him in the hallway. "She's in labor. We're going to do a c-section in the next hour or so. NICU will be in the room because they're there for every multiple delivery. There will be a lot of people there. One team for each child. We talked about this already, I know, but it's quite different when this happens for real. Are you ready," the doctor asked Rocky.

"As long as Meri's going to be OK and the kids are, I'm ready," Rocky said.  
>He stood in the room as they prepped Meredith. Right before she headed to the OR, Tommy peeked in and told Meredith that Kimberly had delivered their son. Meredith smiled at her brother before they wheeled her down the hall.<p>

Rocky sat at the head of the bed as they prepped her for delivery.

"You doing OK, babe," he asked.

"Yeah. Just ready to see these babies I've been toting around for the last few months. It was getting a little harder to breathe," she said.  
>"OK, Meri. We're getting ready to make the first cut," her doctor said.<p>

Rocky put his hand on Meredith's forehead. It was the only part of her that was visible to him and didn't have a wire or tube attached to it.

"Note the time. Baby A delivered at 1914," the doctor called. The NICU team took the baby and put it on the warmer. The baby screamed and Meredith started crying.

"Baby B delivered at 1915," the doctor annouced giving the second screaming baby to the NICU team.

"Baby C delivered at 1916," the doctor announced as the third screaming infant was given to the NICU team.

"Congrats you two. You have three healthy looking boys," the doctor said.  
>"Boys! Three boys," Meredith said, crying as she looked at Rocky. He kissed her.<p>

"You did good, babe," he said.

"Why don't you go see them? They have to stitch me up, so you follow them to NICU. I don't want them to be alone," she said.

"You sure, babe," Rocky asked, torn between staying with his love and going with the babies.

"Go. I'll be along in a minute," she said.  
>Rocky kissed her and followed the line of incubators out of the OR and to the NICU.<p>

Meredith closed her eyes. She hadn't done any work, but she was exhausted. She also figured she'd lost some blood during the delivery.

***Now, what's Meredith going to dream about this time? Did something happen during the delivery?*** -mereditholiver


	79. He's Back

DISCLAIMER: Same as before!

HE'S BACK

Meredith found herself drifting. She found herself surrounded by a bright light. At first she thought she was dead. She heard someone call her name and she turned around. There was Zordon.

"Meredith," he called.  
>"Zordon! What are you doing here? Did I die," she asked.<br>"No, Meredith. You didn't die. I've actually brought you here. There is trouble and you are the one that can fix it," he said.

"How can I do that," Meredith asked.  
>"The universe owes you, Tommy, Kimberly and Rocky. You served the Rangers with great sacrifice to yourselves," Zordon said.<br>"Why are you telling me this now? Is something happening," she asked.  
>"Kimberly is in trouble. She's suffering a complication. You can save her," Zordon said.<br>"How can I save her? I'm here or in an OR or something. Either way, how can I save Kimberly," she asked.  
>"Ask the Universe to do you a favor," Zordon said.<p>

"What? I'm just supposed to say, save Kimberly," Meredith asked.

"Exactly," he replied.  
>"Why can't you do it? You're all powerful," Meredith said.<br>"It's not for me to do," he said.

Meredith looked at him. "Please, save Kimberly. My brother would be lost without her and those children need their mother," Meredith said.

"Meredith! Meri, can you hear me," Rocky called. Meredith had passed out, but they couldn't find a cause for it.

"Rocky," Meredith said. "What happened?"

"You passed out on the doctor. She was worried about you for a while," Rocky said.  
>"How's Kimberly," Meredith asked, suddenly remembering what had happened to her.<br>Rocky looked at the doctor and then back at his wife.

"She's fine. She started bleeding pretty badly. The doctor feared she'd have to do emergency surgery. But just like that, it the bleeding stopped," Rocky said.  
>"Thank God," Meredith said.<p>

"How did you know about Kimberly," Rocky asked.

"I'll tell you later. How are the boys," she asked.  
>"Screaming. They're ready for mommy time, I'm sure," Rocky said.<br>"Are they staying in NICU," she asked.  
>"Nope. Doctor's said they are healthy. They're small, but that's to be expected. They're just fine, babe," Rocky said.<br>Meredith nearly laughed. "If your smile gets any bigger, it'll split your face," she said.

"I have three perfect little boys and one amazing wife. I'm going to brag just a bit," he said.

They moved Meredith into her room and she was surprised to find her brother standing in the room holding his sleeping son. The rest of their friends had also gathered in the room, each holding their own new bundle of joy.

"Well, no one told me we were having a party," Meredith said.  
>"No one told us you were going to have three little boys today," Jason said.<p>

"Are they coming here, honey," Meredith asked.  
>"Yeah. They're getting weighed and all that and then they're all ours until you need to sleep," Rocky said, kissing Meredith's forehead.<p>

"So, do I get to meet the newest additions to our extended family," Meredith asked.

Katherine held up her new daughter. "This is Kassidy Lynne Scott. Kassie for short," Katherine said."  
>"Oh, Chloe and Kassidy. That's awesome. You're going to be up to your ears in pink, Jase," Meredith said.<p>

"Not like I wasn't already," he said, causing everyone to chuckle.

"This is Trinity Grace," Tanya said.

Meredith looked at Tanya. "That's so beautiful. You named her after Trini," she said.  
>"Well, I wanted to remember Trini because I like to think she brought us together," Adam said.<br>"I think she'd like it," Rocky said.

"This is Amiee Nicole," Zack said, looking at his daughter.

"So what's my little nephew's name," Meredith asked Tommy.

"Jacob Thomas," he said.

"So, don't keep us in suspense! What are you going to name you're sons, Rocko," Jason asked.  
>"They're doing a quick typing test to find out if they're identical or fraternal. That will help with the naming," Rocky said.<br>Just as Meredith was about to speak, the nurses came in with three bassinets, each containing a DeSantos.

"The testing is back. Baby B and C are identical and Baby A is the fraternal twin," one of the nurses said.  
>They verified Meredith and Rocky's bracelets and left the babies with their parents.<p>

"Well, that settles it then. Baby A is Parker James, Baby B is Christopher Michael and Baby C is Caden Antonio," Rocky said.  
>"That's awesome, Rocko. Congratulations," Tommy said.<p>

Just then, the three boys began crying. "Sounds like they're ready for some mommy time," Rocky said and their friends headed out of the room.

Meredith looked at Rocky. "What do I do," she asked.

"One at a time, babe. That's why they created pacifiers and formula," Rocky said.

***We'll find out what happened to Kimberly in the next chapter. And Tommy's tenure as a ranger, again.*** -mereditholiver


	80. What Does It Mean?

DISCLAIMER: See previous. Nothing has changed.

'WHAT DOES IT MEAN'

Kimberly felt like she was hanging off a cliff. She kept waiting to fall, but something was holding her back. She couldn't see anything and couldn't assess her situation.

For a moment, she thought she was back in high school and some monster had kidnapped her and was holding her in the dark dimension.

She tried to clear her head, tried to think of why she was here. She didn't remember anything. She wasn't even sure who she was at the moment.

She was scared. She didn't know anything. The reason she was there, what happened, if anyone would find her.

Just then, a bright light filled up the space. Being blinded by the dark, she was now blinded by the bright light.

"Kimberly," she heard in the light.

"Yes? Where am I? Who are you," she asked.  
>Suddenly a figure came into view. "Zordon!"<p>

"It is I my young crane. I've come to tell you not to give up," he said.  
>"I don't understand," she said.<p>

"You just had a baby. Do you remember now," he asked.  
>Suddenly it all came rushing back to her. "Where's Tommy? Jake?"<br>"They are waiting for you. Tommy is praying for you to come out of this, but I'm afraid it's out of his control," Zordon said.

"I can't leave my family! They need me. I need them," she said.

"I know. But you must be prepared for the turmoil you will face in the future. Tommy will be severely tested and while you will not agree with his choices, you will accept it and work together," Zordon said.  
>"What will happen," Kimberly asked.<br>"You will be tested. All of you. I can tell you, one marriage might not survive the trials coming. You must all stay united in your love for each other. Only if you are all united and standing together, will they be able to make it," Zordon said.

"Who is it, Zordon," Kimberly asked, desperate to know what was going to happen.  
>"I cannot tell you that, my crane. When you return to your time, remember the love you have for each other. Remind your friends and family of that. If the bonds between you are allowed to break, your link will weaken and the chance of ridding the world of evil entirely will be drastically decreased. Remember the love you have for each other," Zordon said.<br>Before Kimberly could ask another question, Zordon disappeared and Kimberly was suddenly aware of the chaos going on around her.  
>"Tommy," she called.<br>"Right here, beautiful. That was close," Tommy said, kissing her forehead.  
>"What happened," she asked.<br>"You started bleeding. They were prepping you for emergency surgery when suddenly you stopped. Don't scare me like that again," Tommy said, squeezing Kimberly's hand.  
>The doctor checked her over and decided to keep a monitor on her and keep her in bed for the next 24 hours. She left the two in the room and told the nurses to bring the baby to them when he was finished in the nursery.<p>

When they were alone, Kimberly looked at Tommy. "I saw Zordon," she said.  
>"What," he asked, not sure he'd heard her correctly.<p>

"I saw Zordon. He was there while I was unconscious. He told me we're going to face a test. He also said someone's marriage might not survive. Do you think something is going to happen," Kimberly asked.  
>"Zordon's always spoken the truth. If he really appeared while you were unconscious, then something is going to happen," Tommy said.<br>"What do you think it could be," Kimberly asked.  
>"I don't know, Kimberly, I don't know," Tommy said, kissing Kimberly.<p>

She closed her eyes and Tommy let his mind wander. He was thinking about his duties as the black ranger. Kimberly knew of his involvement and, while not happy, she was supportive. He also knew his duties as black ranger and recruiting his sister to help hadn't sat well with Kimberly or Rocky.

He wondered what Zordon could have been talking about. What could Zordon have meant when he said they'd be tested and someone's marriage might not survive. Tommy couldn't imagine anything breaking up any of his friend's marriages. He knew each of them was with their soul mate and he knew he'd never give up Kimberly without a fight and he knew the others felt the same way.

The nurse came into the door at that moment, bringing his son. Tommy gently woke Kimberly and she was anxious to accept her son.

"Dr. Oliver, your brother-in-law told me to tell your sister has delivered her babies and is doing just fine," the nurse said.  
>"Thanks. Which room is Meredith's," Tommy asked.<br>"She's next door. Since this is a little family affair, the doctor asked for you to be next door," the nurse said.  
>"Can I take the baby to her room," Tommy asked.<br>"Sure. Just don't stay too long. Dr. DeSantos will need some rest," the nurse said, before heading out the door.  
>"Go see your sister and take the baby. See if Rocky will bring the triplets to see me. I can't wait until tomorrow to get out of this bed and see them," Kimberly said.<p>

The nurse came back into the room to check Kimberly.  
>"I'll let you get checked and I'll be right back," Tommy said.<p>

He kissed Kimberly, told her he loved her and headed to see his sister and find out if he had nieces or nephews and how many of each.

Six months later, each of the female rangers had settled into a routine with their new family members. Kimberly's warning from Zordon had been pushed to the back of her mind.

The group had gotten together once a week since bringing their kids home, usually at the Oliver's or DeSantos'. Kimberly hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary with any of them. So when her phone rang the day before she was to return to work, she was thinking the female on the other end of the line was calling to chat and talk about her leaving Jake for the first time.

What she heard, rendered her speechless.  
>"Hey, how are you," Kimberly asked.<br>"Can you come over" the response came, followed by the tears.  
>"I'll be there in a few minutes," Kimberly said.<br>Kimberly went downstairs to Tommy's now inactive lair and asked him to come upstairs and watch the kids.

"I have to go out. I'll be back and you can call me on my cell," Kimberly said.  
>"Where are you going," he asked.<p>

"I'll let you know later. Just trust me, I need to go now," Kimberly said.  
>"OK. Love you," Tommy said, kissing his wife.<br>"Love you, too," she said, before heading out the door.

She sat on her friend's sofa and wondered what in the world had happened. Just six months ago they had welcomed a new life into their family. Everyone had been so happy.

"What happened," Kimberly asked.  
>"He left," her friend began.<p>

***Uh, oh! And you probably thought it was Tommy and Kimberly that were going to break up. Well, you're wrong. So what happened? Will things go back to normal? I do apologize for not updating for a while. Once again, I was faced with another move and I hate moving. This would have been the second time in 8 months. And I had a friend who has written some great stores and was trying to get them to publish them and I just lost track of my own writing. Only 19 more chapters to go. This has become a real labor of love. ***


	81. He Would Never!

DISCLAIMER: Same as before. Nothing has changed.

HE WOULD NEVER

"Rocky's having an affair, Kim. The man love, MY soul mate, is cheating on me with an office temp," Meredith said.  
>"WHAT? Rocky would never cheat on you, Meri. What makes you think he would do that now," Kimberly asked.<br>"Because I haven't been there for him. Because he thinks I let my promise to help Tommy get in the way of our family," Meredith said.

"OK, why don't you explain to me what happened. I find it hard to believe that Rocky would be having an affair. That's not like him at all," Kimberly said.

Meredith took a deep breath and wiped her face with her hand.

FLASHBACK

Meredith and Rocky were exhausted. Taking care of three babies was a lot of work. Thankfully, Meredith's mom had told Tommy she was going to help Meredith since Kimberly's mom was helping them. Rocky's mom was also over at the DeSantos home helping the new parents with their three little boys.

After a month of staying home every day, Rocky had returned to his architectural firm two days a week. He still taught classes in the evenings at his dojo, but Eric had taken over the daily classes and even helped open the tenth dojo back in Angel Grove.

Meredith's mom and Rocky's came over daily to help Meredith, especially while Rocky was working. Meredith was suffering from a mild form of post-partum depression and the family was trying to help her as much as possible.

Meredith had decided to take six months off to take care of the triplets. Rocky had returned to his regular schedule after 12 weeks and Meredith had slipped into the role of stay-at-home mom fairly easily. She took the boys to Tommy's, since they were neighbors and Tanya was over with her two quite frequently. Katherine also dropped in with her two daughters.

Four months after the twins were born, Meredith was dragged back into the Ranger world when Kyra informed her that the White Ranger had turned Tommy into a block of amber.

Meredith had been getting ready for an awards ceremony. Rocky was being honored for his work with the community by offering martial arts classes to the local schools as part of an after-school program. It was a big deal and Meredith was so proud of her husband. She was supposed to get ready and then meet Rocky at the convention center. He was driving back from a meeting in Angel Grove and would change at the dojo and meet his wife.  
>When Meredith got Kyra's call, Meredith remembered her dream from her pregnancy and, when she arrived at the lair, she wasn't surprised to find Tommy trapped in a block of amber.<br>She turned to Kyra. "Does Kimberly know about this," Meredith asked.  
>"No. She was taking the kids to her brother's place for a few hours," Kyra said.<br>Meredith had left her kids with her mom and mother-in-law explaining she needed to do something at Tommy's. No one questioned her since she and Tommy were still extremely close.

"Did you call Billy," Meredith asked.  
>"Ethan did. He's meeting him outside," Kyra answered.<p>

Just as Kyra answered her, Billy came inside with Ethan and Conner.

"Billy, do you have any idea how to get him out of this," Meredith asked.  
>"I'll scan the amber," Billy said, heading to bank of computers.<p>

Meredith thought back to the dream she'd had about Tommy being in the amber.

"What about the meteor," she said.  
>Billy turned around in his chair. "You might have something there, Meredith." Billy went to the box he'd stored his fragment of the meteor and placed it in his machine.<br>Billy threw the switch and a bright light flashed, much like in Meredith's dream. Tommy appeared as the black ranger and free from the amber.  
>"Tommy," Meredith said, hugging her brother.<br>"Thanks, Billy. Meri," Tommy said.  
>"That was a close one. I was worried about how I was going to handle telling Kimberly about this," Meredith said.<br>"Me, too," Billy said.

"Why don't you demorph and then you can take the kids for another karate lesson or something," Meredith said.  
>Tommy made the attempt to power down, but nothing happened.<br>"That's not funny," Meredith said, having a weird sense of deja vu.

"I can't power down, Meri," he said, panic in his voice.  
>Billy immediately ran a scan on him.<p>

"His dino gem and morpher have remolecularized. He can't power down," Billy said.  
>Meredith threw her hands in the air. "Of course you can't. This is exactly what I was telling you was going to happen. This is exactly like my dream," she said.<br>"Any ideas," Billy asked.  
>"Wait! What about the green slime we found when we followed Elsa? The partial scans I ran might show something," Ethan said.<br>"Let me see what you have," Billy said.  
>Ethan pulled up his data and he and Billy reviewed what they had.<p>

Meredith was pacing the lair. She looked at her watch. "Look, Tommy, I have to head home. Rocky's going to be home soon and I want to get back to the boys," Meredith said.

"Meri. I need you're help," Tommy said.

"I know, but I have other responsibilities than bailing my brother out of whatever jam he's gotten himself into. You're an adult, Tommy. Saving your ass isn't my job," Meredith said.

Billy approached Meredith and Tommy. The scene before him brought back memories of high school. Meredith, petite like Kim, standing up to Tommy, who much taller than both. Seeing Meredith facing the black ranger and telling him like it is, would have been comical if it wasn't such a desperate situation.

"Meri, I think Ethan's plan is going to work. All we have to do is pour the slime over Tommy and he should be able to de-morph," Billy said.  
>"Let's do it then so I can get back to Rocky," Meredith said.<p>

Billy poured the slime over Tommy's morphed form. Then, he powered down.

There was just one problem.

"Dammit, Tommy! I knew it. I just knew it," Meredith said.

Seeing her brother standing before her, or rather NOT standing before her just changed the ballgame.

"I'm going home," Meredith said, heading out the back of the lair.  
>"Meri, wait! You can't. How am I going to explain this to Kimberly," Tommy asked.<br>Meredith stopped her walking and turned around. "I don't know, but I don't want to be around when she finds out about this," Meredith said.  
>"Meri, please! Rocky will understand if you're here helping me," Tommy said.<br>"Rocky's getting a big award tonight, Tommy. I have to be there to support my husband," Meredith said.  
>"Meri, if Kimberly finds out about this, that's it. She's reluctantly accepting the Ranger life again, but only because she loves me. Finding out that I'm invisible because of some stupid Ranger accident is going to cause her to go into a fit. And you know how Kim is when she has a fit," Tommy said.<br>Meredith looked at the clock. She had three hours before she needed to meet Rocky. "You have two hours and then I'm gone. I'll come back after the ceremony, if we haven't figured out anything," Meredith said.  
>"But what about Kimberly," Tommy said.<br>"Somehow, I think she'll understand and believe anything you tell her. She loves you," Meredith said. 

The group spent the next two hours trying everything. Meredith left Tommy's house, despite the protest of her brother to stay.  
>She rushed home and changed into her dress and headed out the door.<br>She arrived at the convention center and found Rocky waiting for her. She'd called to tell him she was on the way.  
>"Sorry, I had to pump before I left. Didn't want to embarrass you," Meredith said, kissing Rocky.<p>

"You couldn't do that, babe. THIS," he said, pointing to the convention center, "is embarrassing."

The walked inside and sat at the table on the stage. Halfway through dinner, Meredith got a call. Worried it was about the boys, she excused herself and went off the stage to answer it.  
>"Hello," she said, expecting to hear her mother or mother-in-law's voice.<p>

"Meredith, you have to get here, quick. Tommy's unconscious," the frantic voice of Kimberly came over the phone.

"What? What happened," Meredith asked, not understanding.

"I came home and couldn't see him. I freaked out and we started arguing, so he convinced Billy to use the dino gem to fix him. Well, I can see him, but now he's unconscious," Kimberly said.  
>"Get him to the hospital. I'll be there in just a minute," Meredith said.<br>She walked back up on the stage and sat next to Rocky. She whispered in his ear. "Something's happened to Tommy. Kim's taking him to the hospital. I have to go," she said, reaching to grab her purse.  
>Rocky grabbed her arm. "You can't leave. How is that going to look," he said.<br>Meredith looked back at him. "I'm a doctor. Tell them we had a family emergency or I had a patient I had to get to. I have to go," she said.  
>Without waiting for a reply from her husband, Meredith excused herself and headed out of the room.<p>

"Where's she going, Mr. DeSantos," the director asked.  
>"She's needed at the hospital. Her brother had an accident and she wanted to get to the hospital," Rocky said, hating that his wife had left without him.<p>

_*****Yep, I know. The plot bunny and I were having words over this. He decided I wasn't posting fast enough and, before I could stop him, had created this chapter. However, the drama is there, so we'll see where it goes!****_


	82. Tommy, Tommy, Tommy

DISCLAIMER: See previous.

'TOMMY, TOMMY, TOMMY'  
>Rocky accepted his award and headed to the hospital. Meredith had sent him a text message about Tommy. He arrived at the hospital and went right up to Tommy's room. He found his wife, sister-in-law and the other Dino rangers gathered around his bed.<br>"Hey, babe," Rocky said. "What happened," he asked.  
>"I called Dr. D this afternoon because the white ranger locked Tommy in a block of amber. When we got him free, he was unable to de-morph," Kyra said.<br>"Ethan and Billy figured out how to get him out, but then he was invisible. Dr. O suggested they use his dino gem to try to reverse the process and instead, he ended up in a coma. He said you told him it was a bad idea," Conner said.  
>"Wait! What? Meri, you knew about all of this," Rocky asked.<br>"Well, yeah. Kyra called me and I helped figure out what happened to him," she said.  
>"So this whole Tommy in a coma thing is because of some stupid Ranger accident," Rocky asked.<br>Meredith looked at her husband, "Yeah. I guess," she said. 

Meanwhile, Tommy waged the battles in his head. When he'd given his former ranger-selves what they wanted, he was rewarded with his dino gem and immediately regained consciousness.

"You OK, bro," Meredith asked as he held Kimberly.  
>"Yeah. That was intense," he said.<p>

"Glad you're back, Tommy. Meri, you want to stay here or are you coming home," Rocky said.

"I'll come home. I'll see you later, bro," she said, heading out the door behind her husband.  
>Neither said a word to the other. They drove home separately. When Meredith arrived home she went into the boys room and kissed them on the forehead. She said good night to her mother-in-law and mother and went to her room.<p>

She started changing her clothes. She put the dress into the bag for the dry cleaner and placed her shoes in the cubby in the closet.

Rocky came up to the bedroom and untied the tie to his tux. He took his jacket off and placed it on the bed. He sat down to take his shoes off and sat on the bed.

Meredith knew he was upset. "Rocko, I'm sorry. It was Tommy," she said.

"It's always Tommy. The entire time we've been married, it's been Tommy, Tommy, Tommy," Rocky said, tossing his socks in the hamper.

"He's my brother," Meredith said, not understanding Rocky's anger.

"He's your brother. I'm your HUSBAND. The FATHER of your children. I don't understand why you insist on getting involved with your brother against your better judgment," Rocky said, going into the bathroom to change.  
>"He's my brother. I don't know what else I can say. I don't want anything to happen to him. You don't know what it was like when he was the green ranger. I nearly lost him. We all did," Meredith said.<br>"You're right, I wasn't there when you had to deal with Tommy as the green ranger, so maybe I don't understand why you have to be involved with him and these Dino Ranger duties. I don't know why you can't let Tommy, if he insists on getting involved, do it on his own. Why can't Billy be the one to help him. You have a family to think about," Rocky said.  
>"Tommy's my family too," Meredith said.<p>

Rocky took off his pants and tossed them onto the bed.  
>"Don't remind me. I've been dealing with Tommy's presence in our lives for the last fifteen years, babe. I built a house next door to your brother to make you happy. But, Meri, I can't take much more of this. You're going to be going back to work soon and then you'll have less time," Rocky said.<br>"So I'm supposed to do what exactly," Meredith asked.

"Tell you brother 'no,'" Rocky said.

"He asked for my help! I can't just abandon him," she said.

Rocky got off the bed and faced his wife. "Babe, you have to realize that Tommy's going to have to fight his own battles once in a while. He's going to get in trouble and if you spend all your free time trying to help him, you won't have time for our family. Meri, we have everything we've ever wanted now with the boys and our life together," Rocky said.  
>Meredith knew he was right, but she didn't think she could cut Tommy off if he needed her help. She decided to tell Rocky what he wanted to hear and see what happened.<br>"OK, honey. I'll do my best," she said.  
>Rocky kissed her. "That's all I ask," he said.<p>

Since the boys were asleep, they managed to take the time to enjoy their time together and fell asleep.

They were awakened by the boys crying for their night feeding. Meredith was hoping they'd start sleeping through that feeding, but she was glad they only woke once during the night.

She got out of bed and grabbed her robe and headed to the nursery.

She moved Chris and Parker into Caden's crib and went back downstairs to warm up the bottles. Meredith had breast fed for the first three months, but the demands of feeding three boys during a feeding was too much for her. She'd been depressed about that, but with the support of Rocky and her doctor, she had gotten past the feeling of failure.

She took the warm water bottles out of the bottle warmer and added the formula to them. She added nipples to the bottles and headed upstairs.

She gave pacifiers to Caden and Parker, before picking up Chris to feed him.

He fell asleep after draining the last of his bottle. Rocky poked his head into the nursery and picked up Parker. Meredith laid Chris in his crib and picked up Caden. The both sat in the rockers and fed the other two boys before putting them back in their crib.

They both headed back to their room and fell asleep.

****  
>"Why do you think Rocky's cheating on you, Meri," Kimberly asked as Meredith told her story. "That night sounded great, despite Tommy's interference."<p>

"Because that was the last night we had together. The next day he had to head to San Diego for an emergency meeting. Something happened with one of his buildings and he had to take off. He was gone for two days. I was supposed to go back to work, so I had to arrange for our parents to watch the boys. I was only planning to go back part time, work three days a week. The hospital offered me the position as assistant professor of orthopedics. I was going to be teaching the residents. It was something that I had wanted to do before I had the boys. I took the job without talking to Rocky about it.

Three weeks after I started, I had to work a 24 hour shift. To say Rocky wasn't happy was putting it mildly," Meredith said.  
>Kimberly suddenly got the picture.<p>

"How long," she asked.  
>"He's been staying at our old apartment above the dojo for a week now," Meredith said.<p>

"A week! Why are you just saying something now," Kimberly asked.  
>"Because I didn't notice until the other day," Meredith said.<br>Kimberly looked at her sister-in-law and best friend.

"How could you not notice," she asked.  
>Meredith shrugged. "We've been arguing. Well, not arguing actually just having our disagreements the way we usually do. He talks and I ignore him or vice versa. Anyway, I knew he had to go out of town again, so mom came by to stay with the boys. I was on call and had to do a surgery around midnight. When I came home around three in the morning, I assumed he was still out of town. I did my usual things after my on-call shift and I didn't really notice when he didn't come home for dinner. I figured he was just busy. I was still upset at him for his proclamation about Tommy and I didn't bother calling him. I, at least, thought he'd call to check on the boys. When I finally called him, he asked how long it had taken me to realize he was missing. I had to tell him the truth. That's when I realized I'd lost touch with my husband. When I went by there this morning to talk to him and tell him my news, Cecilia, Jay Matthews' assistant, was leaving the back of the building and getting into her car, which was in the private garage. There was only one reason for her to be there, Kim." Meredith said.<p>

"Maybe she was there with something for work," Kimberly offered.  
>"I thought of that. In fact, I called Jay and asked if Cecilia had gotten all the files Rocky asked for. Jay said Rocky didn't ask for anything from Cecilia and if he needed anything from the office, he wouldn't have asked Cecilia to bring it to him, he'd have asked Max," Meredith said.<p>

"So you believe he's having an affair with her," Kimberly said.

"Yeah. I mean, what would you think," Meredith asked.  
>Kimberly shook her head. She knew what she would have thought. Especially if she and Tommy were arguing. But she couldn't see Rocky cheating on Meredith. Not only was Rocky crazy in love with Meredith, but he was also scared to death of what Tommy or Jason would do if she got hurt by him.<p>

"Look, Meredith, I know what this looks like, but I'm almost certain there's a logical explanation for all of it," Kimberly said.  
>"Well, I'm ready. Give me something. Do you think I want to believe that my husband is cheating on me? Do you think I want to be right? That I want Rocky to find comfort with another woman," Meredith asked, tears coming down her face.<p>

Kimberly took a deep breath. She was certain there was a logical explanation. The problem was, she wasn't sure what it was or how to explain it.


	83. Sit Down and Shut Up

DISCLAIMER: See previous. It's the same thing.

SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP

"Meri, I don't think Rocky is cheating on you. I do think he was feeling neglected," Kimberly said.  
>"Well, give me a more logical explanation than my husband cheating on me and I'll gladly accept it," Meredith said.<p>

That was the problem, Kimberly thought to herself. She believed Rocky wouldn't have an affair just like she knew Tommy would never have an affair. "Let me talk to some people. They're more likely to tell me what's going on than they would you," Kimberly said.  
>"Whatever you need to do. I just feel like such a fool. I've had it all together until this very moment and now I feel like it's all gone away," Meredith said.<br>Kimberly hugged her sister-in-law and headed back to her house. She knew Meredith wasn't going to like what she was going to do, but Kimberly needed to talk to Tommy.

Kimberly entered her house and found Tommy feeding Siobhan while Jake was sleeping in his swing in the living room.

"Hey, Beautiful. Everything OK," Tommy asked.  
>"Nope. We have a problem," Kimberly said.<br>Tommy finished giving Siobhan her dinner and looked at her. "What's the problem," he asked.

"Rocky's moved out. He's staying the apartment in the city and Meredith's left alone with the boys," Kimberly said.  
>"That son of a..." Tommy started to say before Kimberly stopped him.<p>

"Tommy, sit down and shut up. You don't know the story so you need to listen to me," Kimberly said.

Tommy faced Kimberly. She knew her husband was trying to keep himself calm and listen to her. He kept balling his fists, a sign that she needed to hurry before he went all green ranger and went after Rocky.

"Meri'd been working for the past 36 hours and Rocky went to the apartment two days ago. Meri just noticed that he was gone this morning. She went by the apartment to find out what happened and apologize to him when she saw his partner's assistant leaving the building. She called to find out if the information had been delivered and Rocky's partner said there was no reason for her to be at the apartment. Meri's jumping to conclusions and thinks he's having an affair," Kimberly said.  
>Tommy jumped up from his seat. "You don't? Isn't it obvious! Rocky's having an affair with that woman. I can't believe he would do that to her. He sat in this kitchen I don't know how many times and told me how much he loves my sister. I don't understand it," Tommy said.<br>"I don't think he's cheating. I think there's a logical explanation for what Meredith saw," Kimberly said.

Tommy looked at her like she'd grown three heads. "Meredith saw a woman who shouldn't have been at the apartment coming out of the apartment. What other excuse could there be," Tommy said. He went to the peg board by the garage door and grabbed the keys to his Jeep.  
>"Tommy, do me a favor and don't kill him. I honestly think there is something else going on," Kimberly said.<br>"Why would Rocky leave his house," Tommy asked.  
>"I think he's trying to prove a point. I don't think he's doing it the right way, but you know how Rocky can be. He and Meri have been together since high school. He's always been patient and understanding about the relationship you both have. This whole ranger thing has him upset. He told Meredith to leave you to your own devices for a while and concentrate on him and the boys. Then she went back to work and he got that big project with his firm and opened that new dojo. They've been busy and I'll bet haven't had time for each other. I think, instead of telling Meredith what he was thinking, he thought he had to get away. He had to prove his point," Kimberly said.<br>Tommy turned around and looked out the kitchen's bay window. He could see the yard of his sister's house from the window. He loved having his sister close. She was his best friend. Kimberly had always been comfortable with the twins' relationship and had never complained about Meredith's involvement in there lives. Tommy faced his wife.  
>"Why don't you complain about the time Meredith spends with me," he asked.<br>"Because you do spend time with your sister, but you're always calling her when you need something. She rarely calls you when she has a problem. That's probably because you get yourself into enough jams for the both of you. I hate to tell you, handsome, but you do take your sister for granted sometimes," Kimberly said.  
>"So what can we do to fix this situation," Tommy asked his wife.<p>

"Ask Rocky. Tell him what Meredith saw. She's not going to talk to him. She's too upset because she thinks he's cheated and, if he has, she's blaming herself. She thinks it's her fault, so she doesn't want to have him tell her that it is her fault. She wants to deny it for as long as possible," Kimberly said.  
>"OK, I'll go to the apartment and talk to Rocky," Tommy said.<br>"OK, but don't kill him. Despite what you might think, your sister loves him, regardless of what he's done," Kimberly said.  
>"OK. But I can't promise I won't hurt him if he admits to stepping out on my sister," Tommy said.<br>"Love you," Kimberly said, kissing him as he headed out the door.

Tommy took his keys and headed to his car.

As he drove to Rocky's dojo, he wondered what Rocky would say if he told Rocky what he suspected.

Tommy hoped Rocky had a logical explanation because he didn't think he could hold back his anger if the worst was true.

Tommy parked on the street and entered the dojo. He saw Eric walking to the front and Eric stopped to greet him.  
>"Tommy, what are you doing here? You want to teach some more classes," Eric asked.<br>"I'll think about that. I'm actually looking for Rocky. Meri said he might be here doing something," Tommy said.  
>"Oh, that. He's upstairs. Haven't seen him since he came here. He hasn't left and hasn't talked to me," Eric said.<br>"OK," Tommy said, looking toward the stairs to the upstairs apartments.  
>"Did they have a fight," Eric asked.<br>"I don't know, man. I just don't know," Tommy said, heading toward the stairs and Rocky's current location.

Tommy knocked on the door to the apartment. Rocky opened the door, wearing his karate pants and a t-shirt.

"Can I come in," Tommy asked.  
>Rocky held open the door and Tommy entered the apartment.<p>

Tommy knew Rocky was hurting because he wasn't with Meredith, but Tommy had to know what was going on with his brother-in-law.  
>"Rocky, we've been friends for years and we're brothers. I'm going to ask you a question and I expect the truth," Tommy said, glaring at Rocky.<p>

Rocky's gaze didn't waver. He stared back at Tommy.

"Are you having an affair with your partners assistant," Tommy asked.  
>Rocky's eyes went wide. Tommy was expecting a rushed denial, a shocked statement that he couldn't believe they thought he'd do that, hurt because they thought him of something so wrong. Instead, Tommy got something he wasn't expecting.<br>Rocky crossed his arms and looked at the floor. He looked back up at Tommy and said, "You're here. What do you think," Rocky asked.


	84. Fate Deals Another Hand

DISCLAIMER: See previous.

FATE DEALS ANOTHER HAND

"I'm serious, sis. He's not cheating on you. Eric's dating Cecilia," Tommy said as he stood in his kitchen.

"Really? He was just trying to make me realize how we've grown apart. That man. I'm going to kill him," Meredith said.  
>"No you won't. You're going to open the door and apologize and tell him you're putting him first," Tommy sad.<br>"OK. I just hope he forgives me," Meredith said, hanging up the phone.

Meredith turned back to the task at hand. She glanced at the stick. She didn't need to look at it though. She knew what it would say and, after trying so hard to get pregnant with the boys, to find out she was pregnant again after one time with her husband in the last six weeks, was pure irony.

She heard the front door open and saw her husband standing in the doorway.

She rushed into his arms. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have taken you for granted," she said.  
>Rocky kissed her and looked in her eyes. "I shouldn't have left, but I had to make a point," he said.<br>"I know and I'm sorry. Come on. Kids are with my parents," she said.  
>"Really? I was hoping I'd get to see them," he said, disappointed.<br>"Actually, I have a surprise for you," she said.  
>"What's that," he asked.<br>"Well, I'm pregnant," she said.  
>Rocky looked at her in shock. "Really? Already? Wow," he said.<br>"I know, right," she said.  
>Rocky took her in his arms. "That's wonderful," he said.<br>Meredith kissed him and soon their fight and everything that had come between them was forgotten.

They headed upstairs. As they crawled into bed, the phone rang. Groaning in frustration, Rocky answered it.  
>"Hello. … Yeah, OK. I'll be there," he said.<br>"Eric's gone for the weekend and the dojo's alarm just went off. I'm going down to check it out. That OK," he asked, kissing her.  
>"Yeah. I'll still be here when you get back," she said.<p>

Rocky climbed out of the bed and changed into jeans and a t-shirt. He gave Meredith a quick kiss and then headed out to his truck and the dojo.

Meredith sighed and got out of bed. She figured she'd tackle the laundry that seemed to multiply over night.

She carried the basket downstairs and put a load in the washer. She started to think about dinner and took something out of the freezer to prepare.  
>She looked at the clock. Rocky'd been gone for forty-five minutes. She hoped nothing was wrong because the drive took no more than 15 minutes and that was with traffic.<p>

She had just gone back to preparing dinner when the phone rang. She didn't think anything was unusual about the phone ringing, but she began to wish she'd never picked up the phone.

Jason helped load the kids into the Explorer. When Kat came out of the house, Jason did one more sweep to make sure the house was secure and climbed in the drivers' seat.

"You ready," he asked.  
>"I'm hoping they'll sleep the whole way. It's only two hours to your parent's new place, right," she asked.<p>

"Yeah. Hopefully they will sleep and be on their best behavior when we get there," Jason said.  
>Jason's parents had stayed in Angel Grove long after Jason had gone on his path into adulthood. When Kat and Jason got married, his parents moved away to another town an hour and a half away from Jason and Kat.<p>

They were making their first trip to see his parent's new place.

Jason pulled out into the intersection. "Jason," Kat started to say before she was cut off.

Tanya left Zack's studio a little later than normal. Tanya hoped Adam wouldn't mind that she had stayed to finish the recordings because she had wanted to spend the weekend with him and the kids. She unlocked her car door and got in and started the car. She headed toward her home.  
>She looked down and when her eyes came back to the road, she screamed.<p>

Adam had dropped the kids off with his parents. He was wondering where Tanya was, but was hoping she was finishing up the album because he really wanted to have some time with her. Since having the baby, they'd rarely spent time alone together. Between his hectic on-call schedule and everything she was doing with the album, Adam was amazed if they got to share the same bed.

He backed out of his parent's driveway and headed for his house. As he rounded the corner, he slammed on the brakes because he never saw it coming.

Aisha left the zoo, ready to have a well-deserved day off. Zack had spent the week in LA, working with his marketing firm on Tanya's new album and she was excited to see him. The girls were missing their father and, while Aisha's mom was a good substitute, she couldn't do the things with them that daddy did. Aisha was excited that they would have some time together, something that was in short supply for each other lately.

She started to cross the street. A car crested the hill and, as Aisha made her way across the street, she hit the pavement.

Tommy's phone was ringing. Thinking it was Kimberly or Meredith, he answered the phone with a quick, "Hey you!"

"Tommy," the voice asked. Tommy noticed the voice sounded nothing like his sister or wife, but it had a certain familiarity to it.  
>"Yeah. David, is that you," Tommy asked.<br>"It's me. Sorry it's been a while," David said.  
>"No problem, man. What's wrong," Tommy asked. Despite not being as close to David as he was to Meredith, he knew when his brother was troubled. A state that David had been in a lot as of late.<p>

"I'm in trouble, bro. I need help," David pleaded.  
>"What kind of trouble? Do you need money," Tommy asked. Despite his promise to himself and his sister that they wouldn't help David out of his usual messes, Tommy was prepared to do whatever to get David out of trouble. It was his brother. He was closer to David than Meredith was and that was partly because David had never been told of Meredith's existence. David knew about Tommy. When Tommy had introduced Meredith to their brother, David hadn't believed him. Despite Meredith's assurances that she didn't need to be accepted by David and his family, Tommy had a familiar DNA test performed. It determined sibling relationships. The test proved that Tommy and Meredith were siblings and David was a sibling to the Oliver twins as well. Even with proof, David had yet to warm up to Meredith. He spoke to Tommy most and considered Tommy a best friend.<p>

"I don't need money. I need a place to stay. To lie low for a while," David said, his voice on the verge of panic.  
>"OK. Can you get to my house? You can stay here," Tommy said.<br>"I'll do whatever I have to get there. Thanks, bro," David said, hanging up the phone.

Tommy collapsed on the chair. He wasn't sure what David got himself into that time, but he was certain it wouldn't be pretty nor legal.

He shook his head. Despite the fact they were siblings, David seemed to be floundering since the death of Sam. Tommy felt for his brother. Since Sam's death, Tommy and Meredith had tried reaching out to their brother. David had seemed receptive to any interaction by his siblings.

The doorbell rang and Tommy got up to answer it. He assumed it was David, but he opened the door to find police officers. The news they delivered tore out Tommy's heart. He shut the door after the officer's delivered the news. He slumped to the floor in front of the door and cried. Another thing hit him that was foreign to him: he didn't know how to handle what he'd just been told.

Kimberly handed the bag to her mother. "Call me if you have any problems," she said.  
>"Kimberly Anne, I have taken care of children before. You were a child once yourself," Caroline reminded her daughter.<br>"I know, I'm just being overprotective. Bye little ones," she said, kissing her daughter and son before climbing back into her car.

She pulled out of her mother's driveway and headed for home. She hoped Tommy had gotten Rocky to come to his senses and Meredith and he were back together.  
>She started to call Tommy, but her call never made it through.<p>

Rocky climbed into his car and headed back for home. He couldn't wait to get back in bed with Meredith. They had a lot of time to make up for and some celebrating to do. He pulled out of the parking lot and headed toward the highway. As he pulled on to the road, he smiled at the thought of he and Meredith having another child.

That was the last conscious thought he had.

***Cliff hanger. I will give you a peek and tell you that two of these characters are going to die. Which two? Check out the next chapter and find out.*** -mereditholiver.


	85. Too Much To Take

DISCLAIMER: See previous. Meredith is mine.

TOO MUCH TO TAKE

There was something wrong about the scene in front of them. They were supposed to be standing together. There were supposed to be happy couples, former rangers basking the success they had earned after giving their teen years to saving the world. Instead, something was missing. The remaining looked at each other with something that could only be considered a cross between horror, fear and sadness.

The two hurting the most, clung to each other as if they were in an ocean and drowning. And that's how they both felt. They only had each other and neither was letting go. Their friends couldn't do anything to ease the grief. There wasn't anything they could do but let the two have time alone.

The rest held hands and hugged each other, feeling they could be ripped apart at any moment. Knowing that life was indeed fragile and that the power, the power that was to protect them, wasn't able to stop the hand of fate.

Nothing any of them had experienced could compare to the horror, shock and pain they were feeling in monumental proportions.

One by one, the friends tried to reach the two clinging to each other, but it was fruitless. The first to attempt was the one that hadn't known them as long as the rest. Despite the years they'd all been friends, the moods of the two in trouble were still a mystery to her. She was dealing with the shock the news had brought in a different way since it affected her also. She went to the pair and did the only thing she could, wrap her arms around both of them and cry along with them. She had also lost a friend and her grief was beginning to show. Despite her best efforts and the sharing of her grief, they remained deaf to the comforts of their friends.

The next to make their way to the pair was an old friend that was probably the most distant of the group of friends. It wasn't by choice. Their job demanded a lot of time and he'd always been there when he was needed. As he watched the pair shattered by the latest blow, his heart broke. Despite not being a ranger for years, he felt the power flicker in him for a moment when it happened. He knew the only thing he could do was offer his shoulder and open his arms wide to hold them. He knew he wasn't big enough to take the pain away, but he wanted to share it. It was the least he could do for all the years he'd been their friend.

His wife watched her husband struggle with his own pain and she found herself having the same problem. She wasn't as close to one of the pair as she should have been, but they were still friends. She teased the taller of the two constantly, but she held a genuine affection for the way he cared about each one of them, despite the amount of time that had passed since they'd all been together. She didn't approach the pair. She knew them well enough to know that she needed to leave them to grieve. She held her arms out and her husband walked into them. They shared a quiet cry for everything that had been lost that day.

The next to try their hand at reaching the pair knew it was pointless. She knew the pair needed each other and would eventually acknowledge their friends were there. She knew nothing she could say to them would ease the pain. So, she did the one thing she was very good at: she comforted everyone else. She allowed their grief and pain to become hers in the hopes that they might feel a small measure of relief.

He felt their pain. Just as if they had traded places. He knew it was because he loved her and he was like a brother to him. They had fought side-by-side for years. He felt everything they were feeling and the grief and anger was driving him over the edge. He wanted to pound something, choosing, once again, that a physical confrontation would be better than an emotional one. He wanted to be there for them, but the pain was nearly crippling to him. He couldn't walk, he could only slump down to the floor and begin to cry. His wife did the only she could: wrap her arms around his broad shoulders and take part of that burden from him.

This was madness, pure madness and insanity. That's what he thought. He'd lost the one person he'd known his entire life. He'd dealt with loss before and had been grateful that his friends had been there for him. Especially his best friend and his girlfriend. Now, he had to be strong for them.

She couldn't stand it. The pain, the anguish was almost too much for her to take. Never would she have imagined he would be taken away from her. Their family. She loved him. She needed him and he was now gone. She started crying, screaming at Zordon for making them rangers. For pushing them together. All the evil they had fought in the world was all for naught. She cursed the day she ever became a ranger and the day she met him. If they hadn't met, she wouldn't be sitting in a waiting room of the hospital emergency room, sobbing her heart out. She felt like she couldn't breathe. She looked up at the man holding on to her and her heart broke all over again.

Hell. This is what Hell must feel like. He couldn't breathe. Every beat of his heart intensified the loss; the pain. He felt powerless for the first time in his life, truly powerless. Everything he'd been hoping for and wishing for was gone. Nothing mattered to him, except that he was needed. His children needed him. He wanted to draw strength from his friends, but he didn't think there was enough strength to get through this. He wanted to turn back the clock. He wanted to go back to a time when they were all together and all happy. Nothing would help him. He held onto the petite woman in his arms and knew they'd have to get through this together.

The two held onto each other. He was afraid if he let go, he'd lose his last connection to who he was and what he had been. She was afraid of losing the last thing she had in the world. Nothing, not dealing with Zedd, Rita, the Machine Empire, Ivan Ooze, Divatox, Messagog or any of the countless monsters and villains they had fought could compare to what they were dealing with now. Nothing, not talking, planning or thinking about it, not even having been a teenage super hero, could prepare them for what they were experiencing. Nothing could prepare them. Each sent a silent calling to Zordon. If the universe still owed them a favor, it had better start paying attention.

Jason was the first one to say anything, to speak to the doctor and get the confirmation everyone was dreading.  
>"Are you sure," he asked, his voice husky as he held back his tears.<br>"Yes. I'm terribly sorry," the doctor said.

"There has to be a mistake, right," Zack asked.

The doctor shook his head. "We'll have the bodies ready for viewing in a few minutes. You can all go in a see them if you would like," the doctor said, stepping out of the room.

Jason wrapped his arms around the woman while his wife took the man and they went to the room the bodies had been placed.

As the curtain parted, he felt her go limp. "You don't have to do this," he whispered to her.  
>She shook her head and he practically carried her to the side of the bed.<p>

Seeing her husband on the gurney, knowing he was gone, opened a whole new set of tears for her.

"Oh, Rocky," Meredith cried, collapsing against Jason.

As she felt unconscious, Jason picked her up and carried her out of the room.

The rest of their friends gathered around the remaining half of the couple and watched him.

He grabbed her hand and held it, kissing it. "I love you," he whispered.

Aisha's heart broke for her friend. Tommy wouldn't know what to do, know that Kimberly was dead. With Meredith dealing with the loss of Rocky, she wouldn't be able to help Tommy deal with his grief. The group was going to have to be strong, despite the loss of Rocky and Kimberly, because they'd have to be. There wasn't any other option.

Katherine helped guide Tommy to where Jason and Meredith were sitting. Meredith was against Jason's chest and his arms were around her in a protective fashion. He was trying to protect her, but he knew it was futile. Meredith had just been dealt a miserable hand and nothing he or anyone could do could help her, unless they could bring back Rocky.

Tommy couldn't cry. His pain was deeper than tears and sobbing. He had his children to think about. He knew his sister was hurting and he was probably the only one who understood her loss. He just wasn't able to see past his own pain.

Billy gathered the twins into his car and drove them back to their houses. Hayley had watched Meredith and Tommy's children while they rushed to the hospital and Billy knew they needed to see their children. Hayley agreed to stay with Meredith and Billy headed home with Tommy, determined to help his friend in anything they needed.

Tommy collapsed on the bed. He'd peeked in on his children before heading to the guest room. He'd gone into his room, but seeing the bed he'd shared with his wife, brought the pain back again in a wave. Leaving the room, he opened the guest room door and collapsed on the guest bed. The pain came at him in a rush. Never again would he call her beautiful. Never again would she curl up against his body at night. Never again would he make love to her. Never again would they welcome a child together. Never again would he have the love of his life in his arms.

Meredith kissed each of her sons and headed to her bedroom. She slipped under the covers of her bed and wrapped her arms around his pillow; breathing in the scent that belonged to her husband. Knowing she'd never have him wrap his arms around her at night. They'd never make love again. He'd never call her babe again. He'd never play with his sons or welcome the new baby she was going to have. Exhaustion and sadness overtook her and she slipped into an uneasy sleep.

_**Thunk!**_

Meredith bolted upright in the bed. She headed toward the sound and found her brother rubbing his head while sitting on his bedroom floor.

"What in the world happened," Meredith asked, rushing to his side.  
>"I had a really weird dream. What are you doing here? Did you stay over because of what happened," Tommy asked.<br>Meredith looked at her brother like he'd grown three heads. "What are you talking about, bro? My room is right next door to yours, remember," she said.

"Next door," Tommy questioned. He looked around the room and realized he was in his childhood bedroom.

"Holy..." Tommy tapered off. "Guess I'll have a really funny story to tell Kimberly when I meet her at school.  
>"Why would you meet Kimberly? You guys broke up, remember? You're dating Katherine," Meredith said, concerned about her brother.<p>

"What? Broke up. That can't be right," Tommy said.  
>"Yeah. She ended it before she went to Florida. Shortly after the Pan-Globals, she came back and you were already with Katherine. She started dating Rocky," Meredith said.<br>"Kimberly and Rocky? What about you and Rocky," Tommy asked.

"Me and Rocky? Tommy, I've been with Jason since we moved to Angel Grove. Are you sure you're all right," she asked.  
>Tommy shook his head. Nothing made any sense. He hoped he'd just had a bad dream, but it looked like he'd been placed in a nightmare when he woke up.<p>

"Something's not right. Kimberly and I are supposed to be together. You belong with Rocky and Jason's supposed to be dating Katherine," Tommy said.  
>"That's really strange, Tommy, but a bit off base. Me dating Rocky. I don't think that's possible," Meredith said.<br>"Meri, listen to me. Something's not right. It can't be," Tommy said.  
>Meredith looked at her brother. She knew the story he was telling was one he believed. She could feel the conviction in his statements. She knew there was only one thing left for them to do.<p>

"Let's go see Zordon. Maybe he knows what's going on with you," Meredith said.  
>For the first time since she came in the room, Tommy smiled. He stood up and the two teleported.<p>

***What's Zordon going to say about this turn of events?***


	86. Two for One

They arrived at the Command Center, Tommy unsure of exactly what was happening. He looked at his sister.

"Where is everyone," Tommy asked.

"Zordon is rephasing and Alpha is helping him. They should return in a few hours," Meredith said.  
>"So he can't help me figure out why I'm in the wrong place," Tommy said, upset that he couldn't fix his problem right away.<br>Meredith suppressed a giggle.  
>Tommy threw her a look. "I don't see what's so funny, Meri," he said.<br>Meredith could no longer keep the laughter at bay. She burst into giggles that had Tommy angered.

"Will you stop that," he asked.  
>"I'm sorry...I can't help...it. You're...face is...priceless. I'm sorry...It was just a... joke," Meredith said, between laughs that echoed in the vacant Power Chamber.<p>

Tommy did a double take. "A joke," he asked his laughing sister.  
>"Yeah. I was just trying to get back at you for that joke you played on Rocky and I last week," Meredith said.<br>Tommy shook his head. He couldn't believe his sister.

"That wasn't funny, Meredith," he said.

"I'm sorry. It was the perfect opportunity. Come on, let's get back home. I'm sure Kim and Rocky are wondering where we went," Meredith said.

Tommy glared at his sister. He willed his heart rate to resume it's normal, slower rhythm. He couldn't believe his sister had played a joke on him. As they teleported back to their house, he had to admit, he might have done the same thing if he'd had the chance.

Meredith was putting her laundry away, when the phone rang.  
>"Hello," she said.<br>"Meri," Kim said.  
>"Hey, Kim. You want Tommy? He's downstairs working out," Meredith said.<br>"No, actually. I need to talk to you. Can you come over," Kim asked.  
>Sensing the urgency in her friend's voice, she agreed.<p>

She rushed downstairs and poked her head into the door that lead to the basement.  
>"Tommy! I'm going out. I'll be back soon," she said.<br>"Be careful. Bye," came her brother's reply.

Meredith hopped into her Jeep and headed to Kimberly's house, wondering what was so important that Kimberly had summoned her best friend to her house.

Meredith parked in the driveway and rang the doorbell. Kimberly answered and immediately pulled her inside the house.

"What's wrong with you," Meredith asked, wondering if her friend was under a spell.

Without a word, Kimberly dragged Meredith into her bedroom. She shut the door behind her and went into the bathroom. Meredith followed behind because she got the feeling that's what Kimberly wanted.  
>Kimberly turned to the counter and picked something up. Taking a deep breath she turned around and handed it to her friend.<br>Meredith didn't get what she was looking at until she focused on what was in her hand. It was a pregnancy test. It showed a plus sign.  
>And, if that didn't get the message across, it also said pregnant in the window.<p>

Meredith looked at the test and then back at her friend. She did this several times before the actual meaning got through to her.

Kimberly was pregnant. Which, unless she was way off base, meant that Tommy was the father. Her brother had gotten her best friend pregnant. He was going to be a father.

"Well, say something," Kimberly screeched.  
>Meredith handed it back and smiled lightly. "Congratulations," she said, questioning in her tone.<p>

"Meredith! I'm pregnant," Kimberly said.  
>"I gathered that by the positive pregnancy test. What do you want me to say," Meredith asked her.<p>

"Argh! I don't know," Kimberly said.  
>Meredith sighed. "Are you expecting a speech?"<p>

"I'm pregnant," Kimberly said again.  
>"Yeah, you are. Think saying it will make it go away," she asked.<p>

Kimberly left the bathroom and sat on her bed. Clutching the white tiger Tommy had given her, she looked at her friend.  
>"What is this going to do to us," Kimberly asked.<br>"Make you become adults," Meredith said.

"I had so many plans," Kimberly said. "I was going to try out for the Pan Global team. I was going to go to college. I'm a power ranger for God's sake," Kimberly said.  
>Meredith sat beside her friend on the bed. "Yes, you had plans and yes, you're a power ranger. But now, you have to decide what to do," Meredith said.<br>"I don't have a clue what to do first," she said, tears in her eyes.  
>Meredith hugged her friend. "Well, you know you can do whatever you want, but I suggest you talk to my brother. Let the decision you make have some input from Tommy," she said.<p>

"He's going to kill me," Kimberly said.  
>Meredith smiled. "Nah. He won't kill you. He knows better," she said.<p>

Kimberly wiped her face and smiled at her friend. "You're probably really mad right now," Kimberly said.  
>Meredith shook her head. "Not mad. Just surprised. But, you don't need a lecture. I'll do whatever I can to help you. You know we'll all do that," Meredith said.<br>"Guess I should tell Tommy," Kimberly said.  
>"Sounds good," Meredith said.<br>Kimberly got off the bed and grabbed her keys. She and Meredith went downstairs and out of the house.  
>"Are you coming," Kimberly asked.<br>"Um..., no. I'm going to head over to Rocky's. Call me if there's a problem," Meredith said.  
>Meredith got in her Jeep and drove toward Rocky's home. Kimberly went off in the other direction toward the Oliver home.<p>

Tommy was doing his math homework when he heard the sound of a car door. Thinking his sister was home, he went back to his problems.

He was engrossed in a problem when Kimberly knocked on his bedroom door.

"Kimberly! What a surprise! I wasn't expecting you," Tommy said.

He kissed Kimberly, but noticed her withdraw.

"What's wrong, beautiful," he asked.  
>Kimberly took a deep breath and let Tommy lead her to his bed. She sat down and pulled the test out of her purse.<br>Tommy took it, not knowing what he was seeing.

"Tommy," Kimberly said.  
>Tommy couldn't believe it. He was staring a pregnancy test that showed Kimberly was pregnant. And with his child.<p>

"You're pregnant," he asked, not trusting himself to add anything else.

"Yes," Kimberly said.  
>Tommy got off the bed and started pacing in his room. "What? How? I don't understand," he said to himself.<br>Kimberly caught what he was saying and answered his questions.

"I'm pregnant because we had sex. I don't know how you don't understand because you were there when it happened," Kimberly said.  
>Tommy stopped pacing and looked at her.<br>"I know that. I just can't believe it could happen. We were always so careful," Tommy said.  
>Kimberly smiled. "Well, you are the leader of the power rangers. It's not surprising that traditional methods would fail us," she said.<br>"What do you want to do," he asked, sitting back down on the bed.  
>"I don't know. I'm hoping we could figure that out together," she said.<br>"I'll support you however you want. No matter what you do, I'll support you," he said.

Seeing the love in Tommy's eyes caused Kimberly to break down.

Falling into his embrace, Kimberly cried harder. She pulled back after a few minutes and said, "I don't know to do," she said.  
>Tommy held her and closed his eyes. He didn't have any idea about what to do either.<p>

Meredith pulled into Rocky's driveway, next to his red truck. The garage door was open and the Volvo station wagon was gone, so Meredith assumed Rocky's parents had taken the youngest children out for the day.

She went in through the garage door and called for Rocky.  
>"Rocky! Hey, Rocko," she called.<p>

Rocky poked his head around the corner. "Hey, babe! This is a pleasant surprise," he said, kissing her.  
>"Well, I was in the neighborhood. Thought I'd stop by," she said.<br>Rocky took her hand and they went to the family room.  
>"Mom and dad took the kids to the zoo this afternoon. I was going to find out if you wanted to do a movie thing. I don't know when everyone will be home," he said.<br>"That's a good idea. I actually have something to talk to you about," Meredith said.

"Now," he asked.  
>"After your shower," she said, wrinkling her nose in mock disgust.<p>

"You're a mean woman, Meredith Oliver," he said, kissing her again.

Dragging her with him, he went into his bathroom.  
>Despite his attempts to get her in the shower with him, Meredith sat down and waited for him to finish. Kimberly's news had Meredith a little shell shocked.<p>

Rocky stepped out of the shower and Meredith gave him the once over. It's something she'd done thousands of times and never tired of it.

Wrapping the towel around his waist, he entered his bedroom and pulled out his boxers. He slipped on a pair of cotton shorts and a red t-shirt.

"OK, now, tell me what you needed to tell me," he asked.  
>"Kimberly's pregnant," Meredith said.<br>Rocky nearly tripped while trying to put on his socks.  
>"What," he said, when he righted himself on his desk chair.<p>

"You heard me. Kimberly's pregnant and Tommy's the father," she said.  
>Rocky looked at his girlfriend like she'd grown three heads.<p>

"Are you sure," he asked.  
>"Well, I wasn't physically there when they...got together, but I do know that it's possible. Oh, and the pregnancy test said she was pregnant," Meredith said.<br>Rocky sat down next to her on the bed.  
>"You know what that means, don't you," he said, putting his arm around her shoulder.<p>

She nodded. "Yep. This is going to throw everyone into a mess," Meredith said.  
>"You're brother isn't going to be too happy to hear it," Rocky said.<br>"Probably not, but he'll get over it," she said.  
>"We still doing dinner with the parents next weekend," he asked.<br>"Yeah. I figured we'd tell everyone then," Meredith said.  
>"Think they'll be surprised," Rocky asked as he got up and went to his dresser.<br>"By what," Meredith asked.  
>Rocky pulled a ring from his dresser and held it up.<p>

"You think the marriage will surprise them more than finding out that I'm pregnant," Meredith asked.


End file.
